On November 5, 2014, the Federal Circuit sat en banc and issued an Order reprimanding a well-known patent appellate attorney for “his misconduct in disseminating an email to clients and prospective clients that he received from then-Chief Judge Rader.” The Order, available here, contains the e-mail at issue, and is worth a read. The Order also references the fact that, in the course of considering the e-mail issue, the Federal Circuit also considered
another matter relating to [the attorney]. This additional matter is separate from and does not directly involve the email matter discussed above. This matter concerns the exchange of items of value between [the attorney] and then-Chief Judge Rader. [The attorney] provided a ticket for one concert, at another concert arranged for upgrading to a standing area near the stage, and arranged for backstage access for then-Chief Judge Rader at both. Then-Chief Judge Rader paid for accommodations. This occurred while [the attorney] had cases pending before this court. We do not decide whether [the attorney’s] actions violated standards of professional responsibility. We have decided to refer this separate matter and the underlying relevant documents to the California bar authorities for their consideration.