Legal Definitions - U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (C.A.F.C.) is a court that has jurisdiction over certain disputes involving the Federal government. These disputes include:

• Intellectual property
• International trade
• Government contracts
• Federal employee benefits

The court can hear appeals related to its subject matter from all the district courts, the Court of International Trade, administrative agencies like the Patent and Trademark Office, and many other government decision-making bodies.

For example, if a company believes that their patent was wrongly denied by the Patent and Trademark Office, they can appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

In 1982, Congress merged the Court of Customs and Patent Appeals with the appellate level Court of Claims to form the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit to streamline claims against the government. This court is to be contrasted with the Court of Federal Claims established in the same bill that hears claims against the Federal government with claims higher than $10,000.

For example, if a person believes that the Federal government owes them $50,000 for a breach of contract, they would file a claim with the Court of Federal Claims, not the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.