Schoenhaus v. Genesco, Inc.

Plaintiffs Harold D. Schoenhaus and Richard M. Jay appeal the decision of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania granting summary judgment of non-infringement of their United States Patent No. 5,174,052 (“the ’052 patent”) to defendants Genesco, Inc. and Johnston & Murphy, Inc. Schoenhaus v. Genesco, Inc., 351 F. Supp. 2d 320 (E.D. Pa. 2005). The district court correctly held that the limitations of claim 1 must be found in a removable orthotic insert, or the immovable insert portion of a shoe, and may not be provided by other parts of the construction of the shoe. Likewise, the district court correctly held that the “heel seat” of the removable insert or immovable insert portion must itself be “rigid”, not rigid only in conjunction with the rear of the upper of the shoe, and not merely semi-rigid. Because the district court correctly concluded as a matter of law that the rigidity limitation of claim 1 is missing from the insert portion of the accused shoe, we affirm.

Download the full decision.