PTAB challenges

Proceedings overview

US patent 12239333 is currently involved in one pending Inter Partes Review (IPR) proceeding. As the IPR is in its early stages and an institution decision has not yet been rendered, all claims of the patent remain untested through an AIA trial. This means that, from a defensive posture, the patent claims currently hold their original strength, but their patentability is actively being challenged.

IPR2026-00215 — Imperative Care, Inc. v. Inari Medical Inc.

• Type: Inter Partes Review
• Filed: 2026-01-16
• Status: Pending. This IPR is currently in the pre-institution phase, awaiting a decision from the PTAB on whether to institute a trial.
• Judge panel: Information regarding the specific Administrative Patent Judges assigned to this case is not publicly available at this early stage of the proceeding.
• Petition grounds: Details regarding which claims are challenged, the prior art cited, and the statutory basis (§ 102 / § 103 / § 112) are not yet publicly released by the USPTO, as the institution decision is pending.
• Institution decision: Not yet issued. The statutory deadline for the PTAB to issue an institution decision is typically six months from the filing date of the petition, which would be around July 16, 2026.
• Final Written Decision: Not applicable; the proceeding has not reached this stage.
• Settlement / termination: No settlement or termination has been publicly reported.
• Appeal: Not applicable; the proceeding has not reached this stage.
• Defensive value: This IPR is in its initial phase, meaning no claims have been challenged or validated by a PTAB decision. For a defendant, this proceeding introduces uncertainty regarding the patent's enforceability. If the IPR is instituted, it could lead to claim cancellation, but until then, the patent remains intact.

Strategic summary

Currently, all claims of US patent 12239333 are UNTESTED in the context of an AIA trial, as the sole IPR proceeding (IPR2026-00215) is still pending an institution decision. No claims have been canceled or sustained by the PTAB.

Regarding the estoppel landscape, since IPR2026-00215 has not been instituted or reached a final written decision, no statutory estoppel under 35 U.S.C. § 315(e)(2) has yet applied to the petitioner, Imperative Care, Inc., or its privies. This means that, at this moment, the prior-art grounds raised in the petition are still "available" in the sense that they haven't been finally adjudicated by the PTAB.

There is a clear pattern signal here: IPR2026-00215 was filed by Imperative Care, Inc., indicating an active challenge against Inari Medical Inc.'s patent. While Google Patents listed "Unified Patents PTAB Data" as a petitioner in its legal status timeline, the canonical "PTAB proceedings on file" block in the prompt clearly states "petitioner: Imperative Care, Inc." for IPR2026-00215, which takes precedence. This signifies a direct dispute between operating companies rather than a defensive aggregator. The patent owner, Inari Medical Inc., is actively defending its patent against this challenge.

Recommended next steps

• Monitor IPR2026-00215: As a defendant, closely track the institution decision for IPR2026-00215. The decision is anticipated around July 16, 2026. This decision will be crucial as it determines whether a trial on the patentability of the challenged claims will proceed. You can monitor the status on the USPTO PTAB End-to-End system (E2E) by searching for IPR2026-00215.
• Analyze Petition if Public: If the petition for IPR2026-00215 becomes publicly available, review the specific claims challenged and the prior art asserted. This can provide insight into potential invalidity arguments.
• Assess Remaining Claims: Since no claims have been invalidated or sustained, all claims of US12239333 are currently considered valid. Any infringement theories should be evaluated against the full scope of the granted claims.

https://patents.google.com/patent/US12239333/en