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Socket Solutions: No Presumed Irreparable Harm

Federal Circuit, decided 4 August 2026. This is a recent decision and could still be modified on rehearing; the date above is the one to check against. Read from the opinion; quotations verified against the court's text.

Holding

On August 4, 2026 the Federal Circuit held that a district court "erred to the extent it relied on a presumption of irreparable harm when a clear showing of patent validity and infringement has been made," noting that such a presumption "cannot be justified after eBay Inc. v. MercExchange, L.L.C."

A patent owner seeking a preliminary injunction has to show it will suffer harm that money cannot fix. Some district courts had been presuming that harm once validity and infringement were clearly established.

The Federal Circuit held that presumption is gone, and has been since eBay.

For a startup hoping to stop a competitor quickly, the injunction motion has to prove concrete harm on its own evidence, and proving the patent is valid and infringed does not supply it.

What This Case Is Not

This is a narrow holding and a recent one. It says a specific presumption is unavailable. It does not say injunctions are now harder to obtain generally, and it is new enough that anyone relying on it months from now should confirm it has not been modified on rehearing.
  • It does not say whether you can get an injunction.
  • It does not say what evidence would establish irreparable harm.
  • It does not change the standard for permanent injunctions, which eBay already governs.

Educational, not legal advice. Litigation strategy and exposure are determinations for counsel with the actual facts.

Sources