Laches No Longer A Defense Against Damages For Patent Infringement
On March 21, 2017, in SCA Hygiene Products Aktiebolag v. First Quality Baby Products, LLC, No. 15-927, the Supreme Court held that the equitable defense of laches is not a defense to damages for patent infringement occurring within the six-year period prescribed by 35 U.S.C. § 286. The result was widely expected following oral argument in the case, and in light of the Supreme Court’s prior decision in Petrella v. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc., 134 S. Ct. 1962 (2014), which held that laches is not a defense to a claim of damages for copyright infringement brought within the Copyright Act’s statute of limitations.