CAFC Remands Wind Turbines Patent Decision to ITC

The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit decided on February 29, 2012 to remand, in part, for further proceedings the International Trade Commission’s negative final determination in the patent infringement proceedings on certain variable speed wind turbines and components thereof (337-TA-641). In response to a petition by General Electric to ITC that Mitsubishi had infringed on three patents (‘039, ‘221, and ‘985), the ITC’s January 2010 final determination had held that no patents were infringed and/or the domestic industry requirement was not met. The ‘039 patent expired on February 1, 2011, and CAFC dismissed that portion of the appeal as moot, vacating the ITC’s rulings as to that patent. CAFC now affirms the ITC’s ruling that the ‘221 patent is not infringed, but reverses the ITC’s determination of no domestic industry as to the ‘985 patent, and remands for further proceedings.