Statutory Text vs. Precedent: Analyzing the AIA's On-Sale Bar for Secret Processes in Celanese v. ITC

Statutory Text vs. Precedent: Analyzing the AIA's On-Sale Bar for Secret Processes in Celanese v. ITC

by Dennis Crouch The pending cert petition in Celanese v. ITC asks whether the sale of products made using a secret process triggers the on-sale bar post-AIA.  In my view, the case sets up a fundamental tension between a straight reading of the statutory text and longstanding precedent.  My bet is on the precedent. Although Congress has repeatedly tinkered with U.S. patent law over the past several decades, the America Invents Act of 2011 was cl…