Skip to main content
Federal & State Lawfederalstatelaw.com
Home/Federal/Cases
· 12/17/1888

Marsh v. Nichols, Shepard & Co.

Citations

  • 128 U.S. 605
  • 9 S. Ct. 168
  • 32 L. Ed. 538
  • 1888 U.S. LEXIS 2259

Syllabus

<p>Letters-patent for an invention, issued without the signature of the Secre? tary of the Interior, have no validity, although in every other respect the requirements of law may be complied with, and although the issue without the Secretary’s signature was unintentional, accidental and unknown to the Department of the Interior or to the. patentee; but this omission may be supplied by the Secretary or Acting Secretary of the Interior at the time when the correction is made, and from that time forward the letters operate as a patent for the invention claimed.</p> <p>An accounting for profits in a suit in equity to restrain an infringement of letters-patent can only be had when the infringement complained of took place before the suit was commenced and continued afterwards.</p> <p>The act of February 3, 1887, c. 93, “ for the relief of Elon A. Marsh and Minard Lefever,” 24 Stat. 378, has no retroactive effect.</p>

How courts have described this case

Verbatim parenthetical descriptions written by other courts when citing this decision. Ranked by citation-network relevance.

  • “Until the patent is issued, there is no property right in it; that is, no such right as the inventor can enforce.”
  • “Until the patent is issued, there is no property right in it; that is, no such right as the inventor can enforce.”
  • “Until the patent is issued there is no property right in it, that is, no such right as the inventor can enforce.”
  • “Until the patent is issued, there is no property right”
  • accounting allowed until expiration of the patent

Source: CourtListener parenthetical corpus (CC0).

Judges: Field

Read full opinion on CourtListener

Sourced from CourtListener / Free Law Project (CC0).

This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.