Federal Circuit Affirms Athena’s Diagnostic Method Claims Are Patent Ineligible as Directed to a Law of Nature

The Federal Circuit recently issued an opinion affirming the decision of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts, which held that Athena’s medical diagnostic methods were directed toward laws of nature and patent ineligible under 35 U.S.C. § 101. Athena Diagnostics, Inc. v. Mayo Collaborative Servs., LLC, No. 17-2508, 2019 U.S. App. LEXIS 3645 (Fed Cir. Feb. 6, 2019) (Before Newman, Lourie, and Stoll, Circuit Judges) (Opinion for the Court, Lourie, Circuit Judge) (Dissenting Opinion, Newman, Circuit Judge).
The inventors of U.S. Patent 7,267,820 (the 820 Patent) discovered that about 20% of patients with the neurological disorder myasthenia gravis (MG) generate autoantibodies to a membrane protein called MuSK. Until their discovery, no disease had ever been associated with the protein. The ‘820 patent disclosed and claimed methods for diagnosing neurological disorders by detecting antibodies that bind to MuSK. Athena Diagnostics (Athena), the ‘820 Patent’s exclusive licensee, sued Mayo Collaborative Services (Mayo) for infringement. Mayo moved to dismiss, and the district court granted Mayo’s motion, concluding that the patent claimed ineligible subject matter and was invalid under 35 U.S.C. § 101. Athena appealed, and the Federal Circuit affirmed.
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