Disclosed Subject Matter Only Dedicated to the Public When Specifically Identified as an Alternative to a Claim Limitation

Pfizer v. Teva (Fed. Cir. 2005) (05–1331).

By S. Richard Carden

On appeal from the District Court’s grant of a preliminary injunction against generic manufacturers/distributors Ranbaxy and Teva, the Federal Circuit concurred with the lower court’s finding of likelihood of success and irreparable harm and thus affirmed the PI grant. Perhaps the most significant portion of the decision related to the Circuit’s clarification of dedication of subject matter to the public for the purposes of the doctrine of equivalents, as recently set forth in Johnson & Johnston Assocs. Inc. v. R.E. Serv. Co. (Fed. Cir. 2002) (en banc).