Zacharin v. United States

34 Fed. Cl. 609, 38 U.S.P.Q. 2d (BNA) 1826, 1996 U.S. Claims LEXIS 1, 1996 WL 2763
CourtUnited States Court of Federal Claims
DecidedJanuary 3, 1996
DocketNo. 93-186C
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 34 Fed. Cl. 609 (Zacharin v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Court of Federal Claims primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Zacharin v. United States, 34 Fed. Cl. 609, 38 U.S.P.Q. 2d (BNA) 1826, 1996 U.S. Claims LEXIS 1, 1996 WL 2763 (uscfc 1996).

Opinion

[611]*611 OPINION

MARGOLIS, Judge.

This patent case is before the court on cross-motions for summary judgment. Plaintiff seeks to enforce in this court, by collateral estoppel, the Commissioner of Patents’ determination of invention rights, which granted plaintiff full ownership of the patent at issue. In addition, plaintiff asks this court to give legal effect to the Memorandum for Record executed in conjunction with the express, irrevocable, royalty-free license in the invention he gave to the government. Defendant contends that the court should give no legal effect to either the Memorandum for Record or the Commissioner’s prior decision. After careful consideration and hearing oral argument, the court denies plaintiff’s motion for partial summary judgment and grants defendant’s cross-motion for summary judgment.

FACTS

Plaintiff, Alexey T. Zacharin, is a civilian mechanical engineer employed by the United States Army at Picatinny Arsenal in New Jersey. From 1974 to 1983, Zacharin was assigned to work on the 2.75” Multipurpose Submunition Project, where he was responsible for designing the fuze for the submunition. In order for the fuze to operate, it required a ram-air inflatable decelerator (“RAD”). Zacharin invented the RAD, which resulted in United States Patent No. 4,565,341 (’341 patent), issued on January 21, 1986. The ’341 patent was based upon Application No. 305,010, which was filed and prosecuted by the Army on September 24, 1981.

In order for the Army to prosecute a patent, it must have a legal interest in the application. Thus, on September 21, 1981, Zacharin executed an express, royalty-free, irrevocable license in favor of the government. The express license was a standard government form that required only Za-charin’s signature. He did so despite an ongoing administrative Determination of Invention Rights and his belief that the government had no rights in his invention. However, fearful of a statutory bar, Zacha-rin wanted the application to be filed as soon as possible. In an effort to allay Za-charm’s concerns, Harold Card, Chief Patent Counsel at Picatinny Arsenal in New Jersey, drafted a memorandum in which Zacharin could memorialize his intentions and reserve his rights. As a result, both he and Card signed a Memorandum for Record stating that should the government have no license right as a result of the Determination of Invention Rights, then the express license could be cancelled, so long as Zacharin repaid the costs associated with the preparation and filing of the application. The Memorandum for Record was executed simultaneously with the express license.

The Army’s Determination of Rights determined that the invention was owned by Zacharin, but that the government was entitled to a non-exclusive, royalty-free license in the invention. Zacharin appealed this decision to the Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks under the procedures set forth in Executive Order (“Exee.Ord.”) 10096. In an April 30, 1985 Determination of Government Interest, the Commissioner reversed the Army, ruling that Zacharin did own the invention and that the government was not entitled to a royalty-free license. On August 21, 1986, the Army filed a motion for reconsideration. This appeal, however, was denied as untimely. In re Zacharin, 1 U.S.P.Q.2d 1413 (Cmm’r Patents 1986).

Pursuant to the terms of the Memorandum for Record, Chief Patent Counsel Card presented Zacharin with a $2,162.30 bill for the services of the government attorneys who prosecuted Zacharin’s patent application. Zacharin tendered a check to defendant for that amount on May 28,1986. On December 22,1986, the Army returned Zacharin’s check uncashed, with an accompanying letter disavowing the terms of the Memorandum for Record.

DISCUSSION

Plaintiff moves for partial summary judgment, asserting that a) the Commissioner of Patents’ Determination of Government Interest, which vested title in the ’341 patent with Zacharin, precludes this court from re-examining this issue by virtue of collateral estop-pel, and b) the Memorandum for Record is [612]*612valid and should be enforced, or in the alternative, that the express license should be voided under the doctrine of mistake. Defendant cross-moves for summary judgment, asserting that a) the Commissioner’s decision is entitled to no preclusive effect in this forum, and b) the Memorandum for Record is invalid, and the express license is valid and enforceable on its face. This court agrees with the defendant.

I. Collateral Estoppel

“Under the doctrine of issue preclusion, traditionally called ‘collateral estoppel,’ issues which are actually and necessarily determined by a court of competent jurisdiction are normally conclusive in a subsequent suit involving the parties to the prior litigation.” Acacia Villa v. United States, 24 Cl.Ct. 445, 448 (1991) (quoting International Order of Job’s Daughters v. Lindeburg & Co., 727 F.2d 1087, 1090 (Fed.Cir.1984)). The policy behind such a doctrine “is that a party who has litigated an issue and lost should be bound by that decision and cannot demand that the issue be decided over again.” Mother’s Restaurant, Inc. v. Mama’s Pizza, Inc., 723 F.2d 1566, 1569 (Fed.Cir.1983). The basic requirements for issue preclusion are:

(1) the issues to be concluded are identical to those involved in the prior action; (2) in that action the issues were raised and “actually litigated”; (3) the determination of those issues in the prior action was necessary and essential to the resulting judgment; and (4) the party to be precluded ... was fully represented in the prior action.

Id. Federal administrative hearings are entitled to issue preclusive effect when the agency “is acting in a judicial capacity and resolves disputed issues of fact properly before it which the parties have had an adequate opportunity to litigate.” United States v. Utah Constr. & Mining Co., 384 U.S. 394, 422, 86 S.Ct. 1545, 1560, 16 L.Ed.2d 642 (1966).

Defendant argues that, based on the facts of this case, the Commissioner of Patents was not acting in the “judicial capacity” contemplated by Utah Construction and its progeny, and that his decision should therefore not be given preclusive effect in these proceedings. Defendant contends that the Commissioner’s decision lacks the basic procedural safeguards required for the application of collateral estoppel in this forum, because it was based on a written record that was assembled without adversarial discovery, the application of the Federal Rules of Evidence, or the opportunity for live cross-examination of witnesses under oath.1 In an effort to show that these shortcomings caused it prejudice, the government claims numerous factual inconsistencies between the written record before the Commissioner and the documents and depositions discovered as a result of this lawsuit. As a result, the government claims the Commissioner’s procedures robbed it of a full and fair opportunity [613]*613to litigate its case. Cf.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Alexey T. Zacharin v. United States
108 F.3d 1391 (Federal Circuit, 1997)
Brigante v. United States
35 Fed. Cl. 526 (Federal Claims, 1996)
Cruz-Pagan v. United States
40 Cont. Cas. Fed. 76,900 (Federal Claims, 1996)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
34 Fed. Cl. 609, 38 U.S.P.Q. 2d (BNA) 1826, 1996 U.S. Claims LEXIS 1, 1996 WL 2763, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/zacharin-v-united-states-uscfc-1996.