Court Opinion

ID: 9383937
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-03-31 15:01:34.859635+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:17:49.085398
License: Public Domain

Case: 23-1252    Document: 30     Page: 1   Filed: 03/08/2023

           NOTE: This order is nonprecedential.

   United States Court of Appeals
       for the Federal Circuit
                  ______________________

            ILLINOIS TOOL WORKS, INC.,
                      Appellant

                             v.

                  TERMAX COMPANY,
                      Cross-Appellant
                  ______________________

                   2023-1252, 2023-1254
                  ______________________

     Appeals from the United States Patent and Trademark
 Office, Patent Trial and Appeal Board in No. IPR2021-
 00724.
                  ______________________

                      ON MOTION
                  ______________________

      Before DYK, REYNA, and CHEN, Circuit Judges.
 DYK, Circuit Judge.
                        ORDER
     Illinois Tool Works, Inc. moves to voluntarily dismiss
 its appeal, No. 2023-1252, and to dismiss Termax Com-
 pany’s cross-appeal, No. 2023-1254. Termax opposes dis-
 missal of its cross-appeal. We grant both motions.
Case: 23-1252    Document: 30     Page: 2    Filed: 03/08/2023

 2                    ILLINOIS TOOL WORKS, INC.   v. TERMAX CO.

     Termax appeals from the Patent Trial and Appeal
 Board’s final written decision in this inter partes review,
 which agreed with Termax that all challenged claims of Il-
 linois Tool Works’ U.S. Patent No. 10,683,882 are un-
 patentable. We have employed the familiar rule that “the
 prevailing party in a lower tribunal cannot ordinarily seek
 relief in the appellate court” to appeals from the Board.
 SkyHawke Techs., LLC v. Deca Int’l Corp., 828 F.3d 1373,
 1375 (Fed. Cir. 2016) (citation omitted). We see nothing
 that warrants departing from that rule here.
      In opposing dismissal, Termax contends that the Board
 erred in its construction of certain claim limitations that
 have also been incorporated into Illinois Tool Works’ new
 patent. Termax hopes that a favorable decision on its claim
 construction arguments here will collaterally estop Illinois
 Tool Works from asserting those newly issued claims. But
 in SkyHawke, we rejected a similar attempt to appeal from
 a Board’s claim construction when the appellant did “not
 seek to alter the judgment of the Board.” Id. There, as
 here, Termax “is merely trying to preempt an unfavorable
 outcome” as to some other potential proceeding regarding
 Illinois Tool Works’ new patent “that may or may not arise
 in the future,” and, if such an outcome does arise, Termax
 may appeal “at that time.” Id. at 1377.
     Accordingly,
     IT IS ORDERED THAT:
     (1) The motions are granted, and the appeals are dis-
         missed.
Case: 23-1252    Document: 30       Page: 3   Filed: 03/08/2023

 ILLINOIS TOOL WORKS, INC.   v. TERMAX CO.                   3

    (2) Each side shall bear its own costs.
                                      FOR THE COURT

 March 8, 2023                        /s/ Peter R. Marksteiner
     Date                             Peter R. Marksteiner
                                      Clerk of Court

 ISSUED AS A MANDATE (as to Appeal No. 2023-1252
 only): March 8, 2023