The U.S. Supreme Court's January decision in Teva v. Sandoz ordering more deference to trial judges on claim construction was expected to have a big impact on patent litigation.

But some academics questioned how much the decision—which requires the Federal Circuit to review factual findings for clear error but still allows independent review of legal conclusions—would actually change outcomes on appeal.

There will be no change for Teva Pharmaceuticals USA Inc. and Sandoz Inc., at least. On Thursday, the Federal Circuit ruled on remand from the Supreme Court that, even under the more deferential standard of review, U.S. District Judge Barbara Jones of New York had erred in construing the phrase “molecular weight,” and that Teva's patent claims on the manufacturing of Copaxone are invalid for indefiniteness.