Protecting Your Brand in China
What the First-to-File Patent Change Means (And What IP Strategists Should Do About It)
The Corporate Law Report: First-to-File Patents, Hiring for Cultural Fit, Roth Conversions Post-Fiscal Cliff, and Global Corporate Insights
With the implementation of the America Invents Act and the United States moving to a first-to-file regime, there is greater time pressure to file patent applications than ever before. When patent protection in ex-US...more
Today, technology companies are conceptualizing new ideas and improving upon those ideas at a blistering pace. Previously, under the United States’ first-to-invent patent system, such companies could afford to wait until new...more
Did you know that the individual often credited with popularizing karaoke did not reap the financial rewards of his invention to the extent possible? It's true—Japanese musician Daisuke Inoue invented karaoke in Kobe, Japan...more
Post-Grant Review Proceeding Filings Ramp Up In addition to inter partes review (IPR) and covered business method (CBM) review proceedings, the America Invents Act (AIA) provides for post-grant review (PGR) proceedings. PGR...more
With the enactment of the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (AIA), the U.S. patent system moved to a “first inventor to file” approach for examining all applications having an effective filing date on or after March 16, 2013....more
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office announced earlier today that U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker has appointed Deputy Commissioner for Patent Examination Policy Drew Hirshfeld to be the new Commissioner for Patents...more
U.S. patent applications filed after March 16, 2013, when the “First-Inventor-to-File” portion of the America Invents Act (AIA) took effect, have started to be published. Thus, it is a good time for applicants to consider...more
MadStad Eng’g, Inc. v. USPTO - The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit faced an issue of first impression when a named inventor on three patents challenged the first-inventor-to-file provision of the America...more
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office announced that it will host seven roadshow events across the country to increase public understanding of the First Inventor to File (FITF) provisions of the America Invents Act. The...more
The Leahy–Smith America Invents Act (AIA) was passed by Congress and enacted into law on September 16, 2011. Named for its lead sponsors, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX), the Act changed the U.S. patent...more
On September 16, 2013–the second anniversary of the America Invents Act (AIA)–the USPTO will host a forum on the AIA at its Alexandria, Virginia campus. The USPTO AIA forum will provide an overview of AIA implementation to...more
Over the last few years, companies have increasingly recognized the value of design patents, which are directed to the ornamental (non-functional) appearance of a product....more
On March 16, the most significant provisions of the America Invents Act (AIA) came into force. The AIA was seen as the most extensive alteration to patent law in half a century, and was hotly debated over nearly a decade. The...more
In This Issue: Comments on New AIA Rules; Implementing the New Micro Entity Status at the U.S. Patent Office; Obama Administration Focuses on Chinese Trade Secret Misappropriation; and Tiffany & Co. v. Costco Wholesale...more
Sure, First-to-File is new here, but the rest of the world has been dealing with it forever and the sky has not fallen on technological innovation elsewhere. And it won’t fall on it here either under a First-to-File system....more
In This Issue: - AMERICA INVENTS ACT FINAL IMPLEMENTATION: FROM FIRST-TO-INVENT TO FIRST-TO-FILE: The America Invents Act (“AIA”), which went into effect September 16, 2011, introduces some of the most...more
Now that the first-inventor-to-file provisions of the America Invents Act (AIA) have taken effect, stakeholders should understand how to preserve the first-to-invent status of patent applications that were filed before March...more
The transition to the first-inventor-to-file (FITF) system occurs on March 16, 2013. To prepare for implementing the change to the FITF system, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), on February 14, 2013,...more
On July 26, 2012, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) published proposed Examination Guidelines for Implementing the First-Inventor-to-File Provisions of the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (AIA), which...more
In a press release issued earlier today, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office announced that examination guidelines and the final rule for implementing the first-inventor-to-file (FITF) provisions of the Leahy-Smith America...more
On March 16, 2013, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is changing from a First-to-Invent system to a First-Inventor-to-File system under the America Invents Act for all patent applications that have a priority date...more
The final phase of the America Invents Act (AIA) takes effect on March 16, 2013. This means that any patent application filed in the U.S. on or after that date, which, at any time during its pendency, contains a claim that is...more
On 16 March 2013, the first-inventor-to-file provisions of the America Invents Act (AIA) will become effective. The new legal climate will pose additional challenges to obtaining a US patent that demand strategic choices both...more
The United States will transition to a first-to-file patent system on March 16, 2013. Here are some key points U.S. patent applicants should be aware of....more