Patent litigation in electronics
In electronics, a single product often embodies a large number of patents and components sourced from many suppliers. The dispute turns on how the claims are read, on proof of how the product works internally and on how liability is allocated along the supply chain.
Issues specific to the sector
Infringement is rarely visible to the naked eye. It requires showing how a circuit, a microcontroller or embedded software operates: teardown analyses, technical documentation, source code where it can be obtained. Saisie-contrefaçon and, before the Unified Patent Court, orders to preserve evidence are often where the case begins.
Computer-implemented inventions also raise a validity question of their own: the technical contribution of the invention under Article 52 of the European Patent Convention. Matthieu Dhenne writes regularly on this subject.
Product cycles are short. A main action that concludes after the product has been withdrawn serves only to recover damages, so the strategy must factor in provisional measures early and, for imported products, customs detention.
How we act
- Infringement and nullity actions before the Paris Judicial Court and the Unified Patent Court, for claimants and defendants.
- Defence of distributors, integrators and importers, and enforcement of contractual warranties against suppliers.
- Infringement and validity analyses ahead of a launch or an acquisition.
- Protection of confidential information produced in the proceedings under trade secret rules.
Is a component or product under challenge? Let us discuss it.
Go further
Selected matters
Embedded software: patents and trade secrets
Representing an embedded software developer in litigation concerning a mobility assistance technology. Work on the claims for patent infringement, trade secret protection and unfair competition before the Paris Judicial Court.
Automotive: patent validity and infringement on appeal
Assisting automotive companies in an appeal concerning a device securing on-board electronics. Analysis of the patent and the prior art, preparation of the validity and infringement arguments, and drafting of the submissions.
Further reading and publications
- The DABUS case: when an AI claims inventor status, analysis by the firm.
- G 1/25: anything you leave in the description may be used against you, analysis by the firm.
- Matthieu Dhenne, Artificial intelligence and patent law | Dhenne Avocats, Propriétés intellectuelles, 2021, No 78, pp. 23-40. Bibliographic record.
- Les inventions mises en œuvre par ordinateur, LexisNexis, 2019.
Frequently asked questions
How can the internal operation of an electronic product be proved?
Evidence may require teardown, measurements or analysis of documentation and embedded software. The method should identify claimed features and distinguish assumed functionality from demonstrated operation.
Does embedded software raise only an infringement issue?
The analysis also concerns patent validity and scope, particularly where the claims concern a computer-implemented invention.
Why examine supplier relationships?
Component provenance, contracts and technical documentation can affect evidence, responsibilities and available contractual protections in a dispute.