Table of Contents
Federal Circuit
Oral Arguments
Jurisdiction of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit is unique among federal appellate courts because its jurisdiction is defined by subject matter, not geography.
Primary Areas of Jurisdiction
- Patent Law
- Exclusive appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. patent cases
- Appeals from U.S. District Courts and the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB)
- Trademark Law
- Appeals from the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB)
- International Trade
- Appeals from the U.S. Court of International Trade and the International Trade Commission (ITC)
- Government Contracts
- Appeals from the U.S. Court of Federal Claims involving federal contracts
- Veterans' Benefits
- Appeals from the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims
- Federal Employment
- Appeals from the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) and certain agency decisions
- Tucker Act Claims
- Monetary claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act
🚫 What the Federal Circuit Does Not Handle
- Criminal appeals
- Immigration cases
- Most constitutional and civil rights cases (unless they overlap with the areas above)
Legal Authority
- Created by the Federal Courts Improvement Act of 1982
- Jurisdiction codified at 28 U.S.C. § 1295