CAFC Grants Apple's Emergency Request for Stay of Import Ban on Certain Apple Watches

A ban on imports of Apple watches is on hold, after the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on Dec. 27 granted Apple's bid for an interim stay of the International Trade Commission's import ban in a patent dispute concerning the watches' medical monitoring technology (Apple Inc. v. U.S. International Trade Commission, Fed. Cir. # 24-1285).

Apple's emergency request had asked the court to issue a temporary halt on the ITC's ruling that Apple infringed California-based Masimo's patents. The resulting exclusion order from the commission would have seen Apple stop importing and selling the two "most popular Apple Watch models" effective Dec. 26.

Apple had said the ITC committed "multiple errors." For instance, Masimo "failed to establish that a domestic industry relating to 'an actual article that practices the patent' existed at the time" the California company brought its case to the ITC. The commission also based its ruling on "improper speculation" and "did not substantively respond to Apple's argument," Apple said.

The tech giant also claimed that it would suffer a loss of goodwill and "reputation damage from being unable to provide U.S. consumers with its newest flagship Apple Watch products." The company touted the product's "potentially lifesaving features" as a reason for the court to continue allowing their import.

Apple also told the court a stay could prevent it from having to "completely remove the accused Apple Watch products from the market for" a three-week period.

In response, Masimo said Apple oversold the harm it would face, noting the company "has already stopped sales of the infringing Apple Watches" and did so before the orders took effect.

The ITC told the court that the interim stay motion "fails to establish a likelihood of success on the merits given that Apple raises no genuine legal issues but essentially requests that the Court reweigh the evidence" the ITC used. The ITC also said its orders don't create "immediate irreparable harm to Apple." Not all Apple Watches are covered, and the company has an "extensive suite of product offerings beyond just Apple Watches," the commission said.

The court will now rule on Apple's motion for a more permanent stay, with the next brief on the issue due Jan. 10.