Since the issuance of the decision in eBay Inc. v. MercExchange LLC, 126 S.Ct. 1837, 78 USPQ2d 1577 (2006) (72 PTCJ 50, 5/19/06), commentators have expressed various and sometimes contrary opinions regarding how the law has changed as a result of the decision. Yet the Federal Circuit itself has not provided substantive guidance on permanent injunctions since eBay was decided.

Indeed, in its only post-eBay case, the Federal Circuit simply vacated a lower court’s injunction that was based solely on the now-rejected ‘‘absent exceptional circumstances’’ standard and remanded for further consideration in light of the four-factor test required by eBay. Monsanto Co. v. Scruggs, 79 USPQ2d 1813 (Fed. Cir. 2006) (72 PTCJ 464, 8/25/06). District court opinions have been few, but the recent cases provide some enlightenment as to the evidence that will persuade a district court to order permanent injunctive relief.

Download the .PDF to learn more!

Reproduced with permission from BNA's Patent, Trademark & Copyright Journal, Vol. 72, No. 1791, pp. 718-721 (Oct. 27, 2006).  Copyright 2006 by The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc., (800-372-1033), http://www.bna.com