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In December 2025 through February 2026, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issued 38 total opinions in appeals from post-grant proceedings at the PTAB. In December, the Federal Circuit affirmed the PTAB on every issue in 14 cases (82.35%), including in two precedential decisions in IBM v. Zillow Group, Inc. (No. 24-1170) and Ethanol Boosting Systems, LLC v. Ford Motor Co. (No. 24-1381). The court issued a mixed outcome, in which some issues were affirmed on appeal and some were not, in 1 case (5.88%). The Court issued 1 dismissal (5.88%) on substantive (e.g., non-settlement) grounds and 1 opinion (5.88%) in which all issues were reversed or vacated.
In January 2026, a relatively favorable month for appellants compared to historical trends, the Federal Circuit affirmed the PTAB on every issue in 6 cases (66.67%). The court issued 3 opinions (33.33%) where every issue was reversed or vacated. The court did not issue any opinions with mixed outcomes or dismissals on substantive grounds.
In February 2026, the Federal Circuit affirmed the PTAB on every issue in 9 cases (75%). The court issued 2 opinions (16.67%) in which every issue was reversed or vacated, including a precedential opinion in Netflix, Inc. v. Divx, LLC (No. 24-1541). The court issued 1 opinion (8.33%) with a mixed outcome and did not issue any dismissals on substantive grounds.
Through February 28, 2026, the Federal Circuit cumulatively decided 1,569 appeals from the PTAB in IPRs, CBMs, and PGRs. While the vast majority of these appeals came from IPR proceedings, the number of PGR appeals has slowly increased over time. In the December 2025-February 2026 timeframe, the court issued two opinions in PGR appeals.
In IPR appeals, the Federal Circuit has cumulatively affirmed the PTAB on every issue in 1,112 cases (74.93%) and reversed or vacated the PTAB on every issue in 180 cases (12.13%). A mixed outcome on appeal occurred in 150 cases (10.11%), and the court dismissed 42 IPR appeals (2.83%) without rendering a decision on the merits.
In PGR appeals, the Federal Circuit cumulatively affirmed the PTAB on every issue in 20 cases (64.52%), issued a mixed outcome in 3 cases (9.68%), reversed or vacated every issue in 6 cases (19.35%), and dismissed 2 appeals (6.45%) on substantive (e.g., non-settlement) grounds.
Taken together, in decisions for IPR, CBM, and PGR appeals, the Federal Circuit affirmed every issue in 1,173 cases (74.76%), issued a mixed outcome in 157 cases (10.01%), reversed or vacated every issue in 191 cases (12.17%), and dismissed 48 cases (3.06%) on substantive grounds.
Of the 1,569 IPR, CBM, and PGR cumulative appeals that it has considered, the Federal Circuit issued Rule 36 affirmances in 648 cases (41.30%). The court issued written opinions, including affirmances, reversals, dismissals, and mixed decisions, in 921 cases (58.70%). The ratio of Rule 36 affirmances to written decisions has generally trended downward over time and further declined (although slightly) through the December 2025-February 2026 period.
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