Gish PLLC Invalidates Diagnostic Testing Patent for Lipotype

In October 2024, Nextcea sued Lipotype for patent infringement in the District of Massachusetts, asserting that Lipotype’s state-of-the art Lipidomics lipid analysis service infringes U.S. Patent No. 8,313,949, which is directed to diagnostic testing methods for lipid-storage disorders.  On behalf of Lipotype, Gish PLLC argued that the patents should be invalidated under § 101 because they claimed nothing more than the basic scientific fact that these disorders correlate with elevated levels of certain naturally occurring lipids.  The Court agreed.  In a lengthy and detailed opinion, Judge Julia Kobick found that “[t]he claims are directed to little more than ‘multistep methods for observing’ natural phenomena.”  Rejecting Nextcea’s arguments that its claims were directed to an innovative laboratory technique, the court recognized that they “merely recite a law of nature that may be observed through ‘well-known techniques’ and, accordingly, [are] directed to patent-ineligible material.” 

The case caption is Nextcea Inc. v. Lipotype, Inc. and Lipotype GmbH (D. Massachusetts Case No. 1:24-cv-12624-JEK).  Gish PLLC partner Christopher DeCoro led the briefing and argued the motion on behalf of Lipotype, and was supported by Gish PLLC partners Andrew Gish and Conor McDonough.

Gish PLLC is a New York City and San Francisco intellectual property litigation boutique law firm of seasoned litigators with deep technical expertise, who represent innovative technology companies ranging from major corporations to disruptive startups.  Its attorneys litigated at some of the world’s leading law firms and founded Gish PLLC to provide world-class intellectual property services at a more efficient and boutique scale.