by Dennis Crouch
The new Realtek decision highlight an interesting quirk of ITC appeals: a jurisdictional gap associated with review of ITC sanctions decisions. Here, court dismissed Realtek's appeal from the ITC's denial of sanctions against Future Link Systems, finding it lacked jurisdiction to review sanctions decisions that are not ancillary to a final determination. Realtek Semiconductor Corporation v. International Trade Commission, 2023-1187 (Fed. Cir. June 18, 2025).
The case involved a litigation financing arrangement that included a lump sum payment from MediaTek to Future Link if Future Link filed suit against Realtek. Realtek called this the "$1 million bounty clause." While the administrative law judge expressed "alarm" at this agreement and questioned its lawfulness, no sanctions were ultimately imposed. The Federal Circuit's dismissal for lack of jurisdiction means this potentially improper arrangement will not receive appellate review.
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