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Sonos, Inc. v. Implicit, LLC, et al.

Paid petition · United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, No. 2020-1173, 2020-1174 · judgment December 23, 2020

Certiorari denied · October 18, 2021
Pre-decision estimate: 1% cert probability

Before the decision, well below the 4.1% base rate, with no standout signals pointing toward a grant.

Question presented

Whether administrative patent judges are “principal” or “inferior” Officers of the United States within the meaning of the Appointments Clause.

Counsel of record

For petitioner
Cole Bradley Richter
Lee Sullivan Shea & Smith LLP

For respondent
Brian H. Fletcher
Acting Solicitor General

Case

Conference history
Distributed for 2 conferences

Proceedings

  1. Oct 18 2021
    Petition DENIED.
  2. Sep 29 2021
    DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 10/15/2021.
  3. Sep 10 2021
    Response from respondents Implicit, LLC, et al. filed.
    Main DocumentProof of ServiceCertificate of Word Count
  4. Aug 11 2021
    Response Requested. (Due September 10, 2021)
  5. Jul 14 2021
    DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 9/27/2021.
  6. May 24 2021
    Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due June 25, 2021)
    PetitionAppendixCertificate of Word CountProof of Service