A party that infringes every element of a patent is known as a direct infringer. “Divided infringement” or “joint infringement” occurs when no single party has infringed all elements of the claim, but several parties have combined to do so. This tends to occur most commonly in cases of method claims, in which multiple parties perform the different steps of the method and their combined efforts cover all elements of the claim.
The same issue applies to system claims, in which the system functions as a result of the actions of different people. This is of particular relevance to IT-related system patents which, for example, require actions to be implemented by a server and a client.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law are third party online distributors of the broad collection of current and archived versions of ALM's legal news publications. LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law customers are able to access and use ALM's content, including content from the National Law Journal, The American Lawyer, Legaltech News, The New York Law Journal, and Corporate Counsel, as well as other sources of legal information.
For questions call 1-877-256-2472 or contact us at [email protected]
