The ongoing Supreme Court case Converter Manufacturing v. Tekni-Plex raises crucial questions about the burden of proof regarding the enablement of prior art in patent law. The Federal Circuit currently holds that while the party challenging a patent claim bears the ultimate burden to show non-enablement, a presumption exists that prior art patents and publications are enabling. This dynamic complicates the situation, as it effectively shifts the burden onto patentees, contradicting historical legal precedents where patent challengers were clearly responsible for proving enablement.
In order for prior art to anticipate a patent, it must enable the claimed invention; however, the challenger holds the ultimate burden of proving this enablement.
Despite the rule that challengers bear the burden, the Federal Circuit's presumption favors the enabling nature of prior art, shifting proof to the patentee.
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