to a difference in view or the product of agency expertise.” Motor Vehicle Mfrs. Ass’n of U.S., Inc. v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 463 U.S. 29, 43, 103 S.Ct. 2856, 77 L.Ed.2d 443 (1983). “A court reviewing the agency decision ‘must consider whether the decision was based on a consideration of the relevant factors and whether there has been a clear error of judgment.’ ” Burandt v. Dudas, 528 F.3d 1329, 1332 (Fed. Cir. 2008) (quoting Bowman Transp., Inc. v. Arkansas-Best Freight Sys., Inc., 419 U.S. 281, 285, 95 S.Ct. 438, 42 L.Ed.2d 447 (1974)). “An abuse of discretion occurs where the decision is based on an erroneous interpretation of the law, on factual findings that are not supported by substantial evidence, or represents an unreasonable judgment in weighing relevant factors.” Id. “The focal point for judicial review [under the APA] should be the administrative record already in existence.” SourceAmerica v. United States Dep’t of Educ., 368 F. Supp. 3d 974, 986 (E.D. Va. 2019) (alterations in original) (quoting Camp v. Pitts, 411 U.S. 138, 142, 93 S.Ct. 1241, 36 L.Ed.2d 106 (1973)), vacated in part on other grounds by 826 F. App’x 272 (4th Cir. 2020). Under Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a), summary judgment is appropriate where the movant shows that there is no “genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.”
B. Analysis
The USPTO argues that its interpretation of the various provisions of the Patent Act at issue here—primarily 35 U.S.C. §§ 100 and 115—is entitled to deference pursuant to the Supreme Court’s decision in Skidmore v. Swift & Co., which accords deference to agency interpretations of statutory provisions that “constitute a body of experience and informed judgment to which courts and litigants may properly resort for guidance to the extent that those decisions have the power to persuade.” 323 U.S. 134, 140, 65 S.Ct. 161, 89 L.Ed. 124 (1944). “The weight of such a judgment in a particular case will depend upon the thoroughness evident in its consideration, the validity of its reasoning, its consistency with earlier and later pronouncements, and all those factors which give it power to persuade, if lacking power to control.” Id. Similarly, the Federal Circuit has held that
the Supreme Court intends for us to defer to an agency interpretation of the statute that it administers if the agency has conducted a careful analysis of the statutory issue, if the agency’s position has been consistent and reflects agency-wide policy, and if the agency’s position constitutes a reasonable conclusion as to the proper construction of the statute, even if we might not have adopted that construction without the benefit of the agency’s analysis.
Cathedral Candle Co. v. ITC, 400 F.3d 1352, 1366 (Fed. Cir. 2005).
Plaintiff argues that defendants are not entitled to Skidmore deference because defendants did not “consider alternative interpretations or statutory constructions or the constitutional imperative in rejecting the Applications,” did not “provide any evidence that Congress intended to exclude AI-[g]enerated [i]nventions from patentability,” and did “not engage with the effects of their interpretation.” [Dkt. No. 28] at 9. Plaintiff’s arguments are rejected because they attempt to add requirements for Skidmore deference that are counter to Supreme Court and Federal Circuit holdings. Contrary to plaintiff’s unsupported assertions as to inadequate consideration of “alternative interpretations,” the USPTO’s interpretation of the Patent Act was carefully considered and was consistent with the Patent Act’s language and the case-
