> The Federal Circuit denied the transfer by relying on one of its precedents from 1990, which loosened the geographic limits on patent cases. Heartland urged the Supreme Court to overturn that decision, arguing that the high court's own precedent from 1957 held that patent suits are governed by a specific law allowing suits only where defendants are incorporated.
> On Monday, the Supreme Court agreed with Heartland. Writing the opinion for the court, Justice Clarence Thomas said that, contrary to the Federal Circuit's rationale, the U.S. Congress did not change the rules over where patent suits may be filed since the 1957 decision.
> The Federal Circuit denied the transfer by relying on one of its[i.e., the Federal Circuit's] precedents from 1990.
> ...the high court's own precedent from 1957 held that patent suits are governed by a specific law allowing suits only where defendants are incorporated.
SCOTUS didn't change its mind. It overturned/"smacked down" the Appeals Court's 1990 decision.