(December 5, 2016, 9:55 AM EST) -- WASHINGTON, D.C. — Acting on the recommendation of the U.S. solicitor general, the U.S. Supreme Court on Dec. 2 granted certiorari in a case that poses the question of whether foreign sales exhaust a patent owner’s right to sue, as well as whether patent owners can impose restrictions on the use of patented items to prevent an exhaustion of their rights (Impression Products Inc. v. Lexmark International Inc., No. 15-1189, U.S. Sup.)....