Last Friday, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) Acting Director Coke Morgan Stewart issued a pair of orders on Director review of inter partes review (IPR) proceedings at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) petitioned by mobile network provider Motorola Solutions to challenge digital video recording patent claims owned by Stellar LLC. While Stewart’s rulings confirm there is no retroactive application of the USPTO’s recent rescission of previous guidance on PTAB discretionary denials, they also underscore that IPRs instituted prior to the guidance’s rescission this February will be subject to Acting Director Stewart’s discretionary denial framework if Director Review requests on those institution decisions are still pending.

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