Court Opinion

ID: 9452472
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-04 17:41:39.97747+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:33:13.798329
License: Public Domain

OPINION ON PETITION FOR REHEARING
In a petition for rehearing en banc, Tidewater attacks, especially, our award of counsel fees to appellants. Contrary to petitioner’s assertion, the fees were asked by appellants; the court did not act ex mero motu. This allowance, we said, was based on the finding that the relitigation of patent 323 was, in the circumstances, an abuse of that right. We thought it vexatious. We still think so. If Tidewater wants to litigate and relitigate, it alone should pay the cost when it does not prevail.
Moreover, despite the protest of the petition we adhere to our view that in the District Court Tidewater did disavow criticality as an invention of 323 but claimed it on appeal. The statements of its position, as quoted in the opinion, clearly conceded below that Tidewater did not rely on criticality for the patent.
These two points of the petition are noted first because Tidewater’s counsel reads our advertence to abuse, and to the subsequent change of position on criticality, as imputing unethical conduct to him. Abuse of a right may occur without connoting moral wrongdoing. That plainly was the sense in which “abuse” was employed here. Likewise, concessa made at trial by counsel may be interpreted by him in argument on appeal without suspicion of any attempt to renege. But the trial has to be reviewed on what appears of record, and the appeals court must objectively construe the concessions for their meaning. A construction contrary to the reading of them argued by counsel does not insinuate a distrust of him or a breach of ethics.
In neither instance did we impugn counsel’s personal or professional character or intend to do so. No such opinion of him was expressed or implied.
Further in its petition Tidewater questions our statement that “the species patent must fall if within the coverage of the genus patent” and our quoting of Stringham in support. Bereft of its context the sentence might be subject to a valid attack. But, as is apparent from the opinion, and particularly from the lengthy quotation of Judge Soper therein, the word “coverage” is used to indicate what the genus patent claims, not what it “covers” in the Stringham usage.
In the interest of clarity, however, we withdraw from the opinion both the questioned statement and the citation of Stringham. The comment on Application of Sarett will remain; it is not contrary to the conclusions of our opinion. There, absence of double patenting was found because, unlike here, the claims involved in the two patents were separate and distinct. In this connection, we think *1014the petitioner should be sustained in its attack on our inference of double patenting from Tidewater’s concession “that any product made under 323 would infringe 710”. This deduction may not in the circumstances be sound.
In all other respects the petition for rehearing is denied. An order will be entered modifying the original opinion as directed herein, but confirming the order of reversal heretofore entered, including the direction for allowance of costs and reasonable counsel fees to the appellants.