Deepsouth Packing Co. v. Laitram Corp.

Background

A U.S. maker of shrimp-deveining machines (Laitram) holds valid patents on a combination machine. A competing U.S. manufacturer (Deepsouth) was barred from making, using, or selling the machines in the United States. Deepsouth instead shipped the machines’ parts in separate boxes to foreign buyers so the machines could be assembled and used abroad in under an hour.

Reasoning

The Court asked a simple practical question: does selling and exporting the separate parts amount to “making” the patented combination in the United States? The majority said no. It relied on the patent statute and long-standing cases that treat a combination patent as covering only the assembled, functioning whole. Because the assembly and use occurred outside the United States, there was no direct infringement under the statute and no contributory infringement tied to a domestic direct act. The Court also looked to Congress’s 1952 codification of the patent law and found no clear signal that Congress intended to extend U.S. patent rights to bar such exports.

Real world impact

The ruling lets U.S. manufacturers ship unassembled parts abroad without automatically violating U.S. combination patents, unless Congress changes the law or foreign assembly produces domestic infringement. It also means U.S. patentees must protect their interests by securing patents and remedies in foreign countries.

Dissents or concurrances

The dissent argued this reading is too narrow. It said making all parts in the United States with the clear intent of foreign assembly should count as making here, and that the decision rewards evasive competitors.