( October 5, 2026, 16:53 GMT | Official Statement) -- MLex Summary: Align Technology must face US monopolization claims over clear aligners and digital intraoral scanners, according to an appeals court. The Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit reversed a summary judgment. “To be sure, there are multiple ways of interpreting the circumstantial evidence, and the evidence is susceptible to reasonable explanations that support Align’s contemporaneous, publicly stated patent justification. But at summary judgment, where we must view the evidence in the light most favorable to plaintiffs, a reasonable factfinder could conclude that Align used the patent litigation as an excuse to terminate interoperability because it wanted to thwart threats from other clear aligners that could leverage 3Shape’s open system to compete with Invisalign, which no longer enjoyed robust patent protection,” Circuit Judge Eric D. Miller wrote in the opinion. See attached file. ...
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