| eBay Inc. v. MercExchange, L.L.C. | |
|---|---|
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| Argued March 29, 2006 Decided May 15, 2006 | |
| Full case name | eBay Inc. and Half.com, v. MercExchange, L.L.C. |
| Docket no. | 05-130 |
| Citations | 547 U.S. 388 (more) |
| Case history | |
| Prior | Summary judgment granted and denied in part to plaintiff and defendants, 271 F. Supp. 2d 789 (E.D. Va. 2002); motion to amend answer granted, motion to dismiss denied, 271 F. Supp. 2d 784 (E.D. Va. 2002); permanent injunction denied, judgment as a matter of law granted and denied in part, final judgment entered in part, 275 F. Supp. 2d 695 (E.D. Va. 2003); affirmed in part, reversed in part, vacated, 401 F.3d 1323 (Fed. Cir. 2005); rehearing denied, 2005 U.S. App. LEXIS 10220 (Fed. Cir. Apr. 26, 2006); cert. granted, 546 U.S. 1029 (2005). |
| Holding | |
| Court of Appeals erred in directing issuance of a permanent injunction against eBay, adjudged to have infringed a patent, without applying traditional four-factor injunction standard. Order of Federal Circuit Court of Appeals vacated and remanded. | |
| Court membership | |
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| Case opinions | |
| Majority | Thomas, joined by Roberts, Stevens, Scalia, Kennedy, Souter, Ginsburg, Breyer |
| Concurrence | Roberts, joined by Scalia, Ginsburg |
| Concurrence | Kennedy, joined by Stevens, Souter, Breyer |
| Alito took no part in the consideration or decision of the case. | |
| Laws applied | |
| 35 U.S.C. § 283 | |
eBay Inc. v. MercExchange, L.L.C., 547 U.S. 388 (2006), is a case in which the Supreme Court of the United States unanimously determined that an injunction should not be automatically issued based on a finding of patent infringement, but also that an injunction should not be denied simply on the basis that the plaintiff does not practice the patented invention.[1] Instead, a federal court must still weigh what the Court described as the four-factor test traditionally used to determine if an injunction should be issued.[1]
