Patent 9978205

Litigation summary

Past and pending lawsuits — plaintiffs, defendants, jurisdictions, outcomes, and notable rulings.

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No PTAB proceedings on file. This patent has not been challenged through Inter Partes Review, Post-Grant Review, or Covered Business Method review at the USPTO. The absence is itself a signal — well-asserted patents eventually attract IPRs.

Cases on file (2)

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Specific litigation cases in our database that name US patent 9978205. The free-form analysis below may also discuss cases beyond this list.

  • 24-1821U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuitterminated May 6, 2026Affirmed

    Defendants: DraftKings Inc.

  • 2:21-cv-15737U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey

    Defendants: DRAFTKINGS INC.

Litigation summary

Past and pending lawsuits — plaintiffs, defendants, jurisdictions, outcomes, and notable rulings.

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Litigation History of U.S. Patent 9,978,205

As of May 7, 2026, U.S. Patent 9,978,205, assigned to AG 18 LLC, has been the subject of litigation, most notably involving DraftKings Inc.

District Court Case

  • Plaintiff: AG 18, LLC
  • Defendant: DRAFTKINGS INC.
  • Jurisdiction: U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey
  • Case Number: 2:21-cv-15737
  • Filing Date: August 19, 2021
  • Status: This case was the initial patent infringement lawsuit. Proceedings at the district court level are often stayed pending the outcome of reviews by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB).

Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) Review

  • Petitioner: DK Crown Holdings Inc. (formerly DraftKings, Inc.)
  • Patent Owner: AG 18, LLC
  • Proceeding Type: Inter Partes Review (IPR)
  • Outcome: The PTAB conducted a review of the patent's claims based on prior art challenges brought by DraftKings. The board found claims 1-17 and 19-30 to be unpatentable. However, claim 18 was not proven to be unpatentable by DraftKings and therefore survived the review.

Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit Case

  • Appellant: AG18, LLC
  • Appellee: DraftKings Inc.
  • Jurisdiction: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
  • Case Number: 24-1821
  • Filing Date: May 17, 2024
  • Outcome: On May 6, 2026, the Federal Circuit affirmed the PTAB's final written decision. The court upheld the invalidation of claims 1-17 and 19-30 and confirmed that DraftKings had failed to prove that claim 18 was unpatentable. The court found that DraftKings had improperly attempted to introduce a new prior art reference against claim 18 late in the proceedings.

Generated 5/7/2026, 5:30:38 PM