Sterne Kessler Secures PTAB Win for Roku in Patent Dispute with Universal Electronics

Washington, D.C. (March 11, 2025) – Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox secured a win at the U.S. Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) on behalf of Roku against Universal Electronics, Inc. The decision was issued after a remand from the Federal Circuit vacating a previous PTAB decision upholding the validity of UEI’s universal remote control patent.

At the Federal Circuit, a Sterne Kessler team convinced the Court that the Board had applied an incorrect construction of a key claim term, and that the Board had to re-evaluate the obviousness issue applying the correct construction. Now, on remand, another Sterne Kessler team convinced the PTAB to reverse course and find all claims of the challenged patent unpatentable. This victory underscores Sterne Kessler’s deep expertise in navigating both inter partes review proceedings and Federal Circuit appeals, effectively advocating for clients at every stage of the process.

The case is IPR 2021-00455, Roku, Inc. v. Universal Electronics, Inc. The Sterne Kessler teams representing Roku at the Federal Circuit and at the PTAB include Directors Lestin L. Kenton, Jr., Daniel S. Block, Richard A. Crudo, Jennifer Chagnon, Sasha Rao and former Director Jon E. Wright (now General Counsel).