PTAB challenges

Proceedings overview

There is one active AIA trial proceeding on file for US patent 12274325, currently in the pending phase, which presents an ongoing challenge to the patent's validity.

IPR2026-00373 — Skechers U.S.A., Inc. v. Michael Pratt et al

• Type: Inter Partes Review
• Filed: 2026-05-27
• Status: Pending. The petition has been filed and is currently awaiting a decision from the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) on whether to institute a trial.
• Judge panel: Not yet publicly assigned or determined.
• Petition grounds: Details regarding the specific claims challenged, the prior art asserted, and the statutory bases (§ 102 for anticipation or § 103 for obviousness) are not yet publicly available at this early stage of the proceeding.
• 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 2026-11-27.
• Final Written Decision: Not applicable; a Final Written Decision can only be issued after a trial has been instituted and completed.
• Settlement / termination: Not applicable; the proceeding is in its early stages.
• Appeal: Not applicable; there is no Final Written Decision to appeal.
• Defensive value: This proceeding indicates an active challenge to the patent's validity. If the PTAB institutes review, the validity of the challenged claims will be tested. If the claims are subsequently found unpatentable in a Final Written Decision, it would significantly weaken any assertion of those claims.

Strategic summary

As of today, US patent 12274325 has one pending Inter Partes Review (IPR2026-00373). Given the recent filing date (2026-05-27), no claims have been canceled or sustained by the PTAB yet. Therefore, all claims of US 12274325 are currently UNTESTED in AIA trial proceedings, meaning their patentability has not been adjudicated by the PTAB.

The estoppel landscape under § 315(e)(2) for this patent is not yet formed. Since the IPR is still in the pre-institution phase, no grounds have been raised or reasonably could have been raised to trigger estoppel against the petitioner, Skechers U.S.A., Inc. or its privies. All potential prior-art grounds remain available for future challenges by other parties.

The fact that Skechers U.S.A., Inc. is the petitioner, combined with the ongoing litigation in the Eastern District of Texas (2:25-CV-00744) where Skechers is a defendant, suggests a strategic defensive move to challenge the patent's validity.

Recommended next steps

For a defendant currently facing assertion of this patent, it is crucial to monitor IPR2026-00373 closely. The most significant upcoming milestone is the institution decision deadline, which is expected around 2026-11-27. The PTAB's decision to institute or deny review will have a substantial impact on the patent's perceived strength and potential for invalidation.

If the PTAB institutes the IPR, the petitioner's arguments against the patentability of the challenged claims will be heard, and there will be an opportunity to observe the strength of the patent owner's defense. The institution decision, when issued, will be publicly available on the USPTO PTAB Decisions portal.