As we approach the end of 2016, it’s a good time to look ahead to the cases that may have a significant impact on patent law in the coming year. Here is a preview of some of the important patent decisions on the Supreme Court’s docket for 2017.

Life Technologies Corp. v. Promega Corp.

Over the last 15 years, the Federal Circuit has continued to expand the scope of the extraterritorial effect of U.S. patent law.

In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday in favor of Samsung in their ongoing case against Apple over design patent damages. The Court’s decision reversed an earlier ruling by the Federal Circuit that awarded Apple $399 million in damages.

The central argument in the case was over the language of 35 U.S.C. §289, which stated that a defendant found infringing on a patented “article of manufacture” was “liable to the owner to the extent of his total profit.” See Samsung Electronics Co. v. Apple Inc., 580 U.S. ___ (2016).

The court held that the term “article of manufacture” should not necessarily be construed to mean only an end product sold to consumers, but could also be construed more broadly to mean infringing components of a product.