USA: Court reinstates Staccato cherry patent, victory for AAFC

U.S. Court reinstates Staccato cherry plant patent

On March 12, 2025, the District Court for the Eastern District of Washington reversed its previous decision invalidating the U.S. plant patent for the Staccato cherry, owned by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC). This ruling marks another legal victory for AAFC and follows the Court’s recent decision that the so-called "Glory" cherry is, in fact, the Staccato cherry.

As a result, AAFC is now free to pursue its claims against the unauthorized propagation, distribution, and sale of "Glory" cherry trees or fruit. The long-running legal dispute involves three U.S.-based entities: Gordon Goodwin, a Washington orchardist who claimed to have discovered and patented the "Glory" variety; Van Well Nursery, Inc., a nursery that allegedly improperly transferred a Staccato cherry tree to Goodwin before growing and selling "Glory" trees; and Monson Fruit Company, a grower and seller of the disputed variety.

Judicial error and evidence manipulation

The Court acknowledged that it had committed "clear error in granting summary judgment" regarding the alleged invalidity of the Staccato patent. During the proceedings, the defendants submitted an Excel spreadsheet that was supposed to demonstrate sales of Staccato cherries before AAFC filed its patent application.

However, the data had been manipulated: the defendants excluded 10 rows of information that, along with other evidence, proved the sales were actually of the Sonata variety and not Staccato.

The Court stated: "It is undisputed that the defendants excluded the first 10 rows of the spreadsheet, which indicated that the sales were actually of Sonata, an entirely different cherry variety, and then falsely represented to the Court that the document was an accurate copy of the original spreadsheet. It would be manifestly unjust to overlook this conduct at this stage of the proceedings."

Intellectual property protection and industry response

Summerland Varieties Corp. (SVC), the global master license holder for Staccato cherries, welcomed the ruling. SVC general manager Sean Beirnes stated, "We are very pleased to manage the license for a valid patent that can now be fully enforced."

Beirnes emphasized the importance of respecting intellectual property in the global fruit industry: "The worldwide fruit industry is built on trust. It is critically important that all stakeholders respect the rights associated with protected varieties. SVC will have zero tolerance for those who attempt to bypass the rules."

Source: www.thegrower.org

Image source: SL Fruit Service 

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