Supreme Court Rules on Patent Exhaustion Doctrine / 最高法院对专利权穷尽原则做出裁决

On June 9, the United States Supreme Court issued a significant opinion on the issue of patent exhaustion. In the case of Quanta Computer, Inc. v. LG Electronics Inc., 76 U.S.L.W. 4375 (2008), the Court ruled unanimously that the patent exhaustion doctrine applies to the sale of components of a patented system, even though the component must be combined with additional components in order for the patent claims to be practiced. In addition, the Court confirmed that the exhaustion doctrine applies both to apparatus and method claims. This ruling reverses a previous unanimous opinion by a three-judge panel of the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals.

6月9日，美国最高法院对专利权穷尽问题发出重要判决意见。在广达电脑V. LG电子一案中（Quanta Computer, Inc. v. LG Electronics Inc., 76 U.S.L.W. 4375 (2008)），高法全体大法官做出一致裁决，为实施专利权利要求，受专利保护的系统其部件必须与其它部件进行组合，专利权穷尽原则适用于这些系统部件的销售。此外，高法确定专利权穷尽原则适用于设备和方法权利要求。该裁决推翻了由联邦巡回上诉法院三位法官组成的合议庭的一致意见。

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