1:23-cv-00032
D. Me.Aug 26, 2025Background
- BTL Industries, Inc. claims Rejuva Fresh LLC and its owner, Polly Jacobs, are infringing several patents related to noninvasive body- and facial-contouring devices utilizing electromagnetic and radiofrequency energy.
- The case centers on whether Rejuva Fresh's products infringe the patents tied to BTL's EMSCULPT and EMFACE devices, which tone and sculpt the body and face through novel technologies.
- BTL alleges multiple causes of action, including patent and trademark infringement and violations of the Maine Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act.
- The present decision deals specifically with the construction of disputed claim terms in the patents, a preliminary legal phase in patent litigation.
- Both parties dispute the legal meaning and definiteness of key claim terms, as well as the definition of a "person of ordinary skill in the art" (POSITA).
- The court was tasked with construing terms whose meanings impact the enforceability and scope of the asserted patents.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who is a POSITA? | Broad technical/medical education & exp. | Limited to trained device operators | Court adopts BTL’s broader, technical def. |
| "Enhance...appearance"/"Toned" terms definite? | Linked to objective muscle contraction | Indefinite; lack of objective standards | Indefinite; lacks objective boundaries |
| Meaning of "configured to" | Means "designed to" | Means "set up to" by operator | Means "designed to" |
| "Arranged on a circumference of" | Means "in close proximity" | Means "in contact with" | Means "in close proximity with circumference" |
| Meaning of "an electrode" in patent context | Means "one or more electrodes" | At least one must apply both energies | Means "one or more electrodes" |
Key Cases Cited
- Nautilus, Inc. v. Biosig Instruments, Inc., 572 U.S. 898 (definiteness standard: claims must inform with reasonable certainty)
- Phillips v. AWH Corp., 415 F.3d 1303 (framework for claim construction, intrinsic and extrinsic evidence hierarchy)
- KCJ Corp. v. Kinetic Concepts, Inc., 223 F.3d 1351 (in patent claims, "a" generally means "one or more" in open-ended claims)
- Baldwin Graphic Sys., Inc. v. Siebert, Inc., 512 F.3d 1338 (exceptions to the plural rule for indefinite articles are rare)
- Markman v. Westview Instruments, Inc., 517 U.S. 370 (claims are construed from perspective of those skilled in the art)