The Federal Circuit is writing more opinions — specifically, more nonprecedential opinions — several years after it faced criticism from a group of patent lawyers and academics over the frequency with which it disposed of cases using judgments saying just “affirmed,” Michael Shapiro reports.

In 2025, the Federal Circuit issued 94 judgments under Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 36, which allows such decisions. According to a Bloomberg Law analysis, it was the first time that number dipped below 100 since 2007, and the court is on pace to post a modestly smaller total in 2026. The court continues to have the same power to issue the judgments, but such issuances have slowed to a trickle. At the same time, the number of nonprecedential opinions it issues is steadily increasing.

The change follows a string of unsuccessful Supreme Court petitions from patent owners, including Island Intellectual Property, who argued the one-word rulings made it impossible to understand why their cases were rejected by the appeals court, which has exclusive jurisdiction over patent appeals. While SCOTUS declined to act, the Federal Circuit appears to have taken note.

Charley Macedo, one of the lawyers who represented Island IP, was cautiously optimistic his team’s push had moved the needle on the one-word judgments. “I’d be happy if our objections resonated with the court,” he said.