Fed. Circ. Patent Decisions In 2025: An Empirical Review
This ninth annual article provides a statistical review of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit's decisions in patent cases during calendar year 2025.
The court significantly increased its output in 2025 but still could not keep pace with the input, resulting in ever-longer delays to oral argument and disposition.
Although the court heard proportionally more cases from the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, which typically have higher affirmance rates than district court appeals, the court's affirmance rate fell in 2025 — primarily due to an increase in mixed decisions.
The court issued more opinions and fewer summary affirmances than in previous years, and the dissent rate continued to decline. The mandamus docket ballooned even though the court denied relief in every case.
Patent owners and applicants continued to fare poorly overall, especially when appealing from adverse decisions. The court decided fewer patent-eligibility cases, and it held claims patent-eligible only once all year.
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