United States Supreme Court Cases & Opinions

U.S. Supreme Court

Pope Mfg. Co. v. Gormully , 144 U.S. 248 (1892)

Pope Manufacturing Company v. Gormully (No. 3)

No. 207

Argued March 10-11, 1892

Decided April 4, 1892

144 U.S. 248

Syllabus

The monopoly granted by law to a patentee is for one entire thing, and in order to enable an assignee to sue for an infringement, the assignment must convey to him the entire and unqualified monopoly which the patentee holds in the territory specified.

A conveyance by a patentee of all his right, title, and interest in and to the letters patent on velocipedes granted to him, so far as said patent relates to or covers the adjustable hammock seat or saddle, is a mere license.

Claim 1 in letters patent No. 314,142, issued to Thomas J. Kirkpatrick March 17, 1885, for a bicycle saddle, when construed with reference to the previous state of the art, is not infringed by the defendants' saddle.

This was a bill in equity for the infringement of two letters patent, namely, No. 216,231, issued to John Shire, June 3, 1879, for an improvement in velocipedes; and, second, patent No. 314, 142, issued March 17, 1885, to Thomas J. Kirkpatrick, for a bicycle saddle.

Both patents were contested by the defendants upon the grounds of their invalidity and noninfringement, and in addition thereto it was insisted that plaintiff had no title to the

Page 144 U. S. 249

Shire patent. Upon the hearing in the court below, the bill was dismissed, and plaintiff appealed to this Court. 34 F.8d 3.