U.S. District Judge James Cacheris of the Eastern District of Virginia decided in April that the rules were an improper expansion of the PTO's statutory authority and the agency took its case to the appellate panel. At the time of the decision, GlaxoSmithKline, which complained that about 100 of its pending applications would be jeopardized, said the lower court's judgment was "in support of innovation across all industries." The PTO believes that its rules are consistent with existing statutes and would strengthen the U.S. patent system for all, an agency spokeswoman said.