Grants of patents are done under the auspices and oversight of a principal officer as well, and most invalidations are done by inferior officers. (In fact, appe

Grants of patents are done under the auspices and oversight of a principal officer as well, and most invalidations are done by inferior officers. (In fact, appeals in the patent application process are handled by the same Patent Trial and Appeal Board that handles patent challenges at issue in this case.) This case doesn't concern who usually makes the decision; the case concerns who has the final, authoritative say in the decision -- the inferior officers have to actually be under the direction of a principal officer.