A set of factors considered by the United States Patent & Trademark Office in considering whether or not to stay an Inter Partes challenge to patent validity when there is a co-pending proceeding in Federal Court. The precedent was set in a decision of the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB). The Fintiv factors are:
- whether the court granted a stay or evidence exists that one may be granted if an Inter Partes proceeding is instituted;
- proximity of the court’s trial date to the Board’s projected statutory deadline for a final written decision;
- the investment in the parallel proceeding by the court and the parties;
- overlap between issues raised in the petition for Inter Partes review the parallel Federal Court proceeding;
- whether the petitioner and the defendant in the parallel proceeding are the same party; and
- other circumstances that impact the Board’s exercise of discretion, including the merits.
Fintiv is not applied to Section 337 proceedings before the US-ITC.