James v. United States

James v. United States The Federal Circuit dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction because the district-court cases did not arise under the patent laws, involve PTO review, or fit the court’s limited Tucker Act appellate jurisdiction. The court also declined transfer under 28 U.S.C. § 1631 given a related appeal already pending in the Third Circuit. The order is a reminder that the Federal Circuit will promptly police its limited appellate jurisdiction over district-court appeals, including non-patent civil matters filed in that court by mistake. Appeal dismissed; all pending motions denied; each side bears its own costs. The underlying cases sought $50 million in damages for alleged judicial conflicts connected to an employment-discrimination dispute, not patent claims. The court held that none of the usual bases for Federal Circuit district-court jurisdiction applied: patent-law arising-under jurisdiction, PTO-review jurisdiction, or qualifying small Tucker Act claims. The panel declined to transfer the appeal under § 1631 because the appellant already had a related appeal pending in the Third Circuit and identified no other proper transferee court. The court also stated it lacked jurisdiction to consider requests concerning recusal or disqualification of Third Circuit judges. The nonprecedential order dismissed the appeal and denied all pending motions. standing / jurisdiction remand non-precedential damages standing / jurisdiction remand non-precedential damages standing / jurisdiction non-precedential