News & Analysis as of

Obviousness Patent Examinations

Levenfeld Pearlstein, LLC

Redesigning Design Patent Validity

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit sitting en banc recently overruled the long-standing test for determining obviousness of design patents in LKQ Corporation, Keystone Automotive Industries, Inc. v. GM Global...more

Womble Bond Dickinson

USPTO Issues Updated Examination Guidance After Federal Circuit Overhauls Test for Design Patent Obviousness

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The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has issued a Memorandum to the Corps of Patent Examiners (the “Guidance”), attempting to provide clarity in the wake of the Federal Circuit’s highly anticipated en banc...more

Morrison & Foerster LLP

Federal Circuit Overrules Obviousness Test for Design Patents

In its first en banc patent decision since 2018, the Federal Circuit overruled the longstanding obviousness test for design patents under 35 U.S.C. 103. LKQ Corp. v. GM Global Tech. Operations LLC, No. 21‑2348 slip op. (Fed....more

Foley & Lardner LLP

USPTO Issues Updated Guidance on Obviousness

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For the first time in nearly 15 years, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has issued “Updated Guidance for Making a Proper Determination of Obviousness” under the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in KSR Int’l Co. v....more

McDermott Will & Emery

New PTO Guidance: Use KSR Flexible Approach to Obviousness

On February 27, 2024, the US Patent & Trademark Office (PTO) published updated guidance for examiners on how to make a proper determination of obviousness. The guidance expands upon and reinforces the legal framework for...more

Womble Bond Dickinson

New USPTO Obviousness Guidelines Seek to Refine Examiner Evaluations Likely Making Path to Patent Grant More Difficult and...

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On February 27, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) released new guidance aimed at enhancing the methodology used to assess the obviousness of patent applications. The updated USPTO guidance emphasizes the...more

Haug Partners LLP

In SynQor, Inc. v. Vicor Corp., Federal Circuit Applies Collateral Estoppel to Related Inter Partes Reexamination Proceedings

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On February 22, 2021, the Federal Circuit addressed for the first time whether collateral estoppel (i.e., issue preclusion) was applicable in inter partes reexamination proceedings. The case is SynQor, Inc. v. Vicor Corp.,...more

Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.L.L.C.

Federal Circuit Appeals from the PTAB and ITC: Summaries of Key 2020 Decisions: In re Google Tech. Holdings LLC, 980 F.3d 858...

Google applied for a patent on video-on-demand systems. The Patent Trial and Appeal Board affirmed the examiner’s rejection of the claims as obvious, stating that Google’s responses to the examiner’s rejections were...more

Knobbe Martens

Federal Circuit Review - November 2019

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The Appointments Clause: Ensuring That PTAB Decisions Are Subject to Constitutional Checks and Balances  In Arthrex, Inc. v. Smith & Nephew, Inc., Appeal No. 18-2251, the Federal Circuit ruled that, under the then-existing...more

Williams Mullen

PTAB Designates as Informative Two Ex Parte Decisions Regarding Examiners’ Use of “Design Choice” Rationale in Support of...

Williams Mullen on

On October 15, 2019, the PTAB designated as informative two decisions providing insight into when it is an appropriate for an examiner to reply upon a so-called “design choice” rationale in support of an obviousness...more

Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP

3 Areas of Renewed Interest for Biotechnology, Chemical and Pharmaceutical Patents

The United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) has renewed its interest in obviousness, functional claiming and requests for information, especially for biotechnology, chemical and pharmaceutical patents. The USPTO...more

Foley & Lardner LLP

Federal Circuit Outlines Four Options For Overcoming Obviousness Rejections Based On Routine Optimization

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In E.I. DuPont De Nemours & Co. v. Synvina C.V., the Federal Circuit reversed the decision of the USPTO Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) that had upheld Synvina’s chemical process patent against an obviousness challenge...more

Foley & Lardner LLP

Federal Circuit Upholds Zomig Patents Finding Intranasal Delivery Not Obviousness

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In Impax Laboratories Inc. v. Lannett Holdings Inc., the Federal Circuit upheld the district court decision finding that defendants had failed to establish obviousness of AstraZeneca’s Zomig patents (directed to intranasal...more

Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt PC

Latest Federal Circuit Court Cases - June 2018

Aatrix Software, Inc. v. Green Shades Software, Inc., Appeal No. 2017-1452 (Fed. Cir. May 31, 2018) and Berkheimer v. HP Inc., Appeal No. 2017-1437 (Fed. Cir. May 31, 2018) - In these two, published, precedential orders...more

Knobbe Martens

In Re: Durance

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Federal Circuit Summaries - Before Lourie, Reyna, and Chen. Appeal from the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (“PTAB”). Summary: Nothing in § 41.41(b)(2) bars a reply brief from addressing new arguments raised in the...more

Knobbe Martens

PTAB Designates Informative Decisions on Discretionary Denial of Institution for Prior Art Previously Presented to the Office

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On March 21, 2018, the PTAB designated two decisions as “informative” that denied institution for presenting prior art that had been previously presented during prosecution. Becton, Dickinson & Co. v. B. Braun Melsungen AG,...more

Jones Day

PTAB Designates Two Decisions Declining Review Under § 325(d) as Informative

Jones Day on

On March 21, 2018 the PTAB issued a press release announcing that two decisions denying review under 35 U.S.C. § 325(d) are designated as informative: Kayak Software Corp.v. International Business Machines Corp.,...more

Knobbe Martens

In Re: Gregory A. Brandt, John B. Letts, Firestone Building Products Company, LLC

Knobbe Martens on

Federal Circuit Summaries - Before Lourie, Reyna, and Taranto. Appeal from the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. Summary: A prima facie case of obviousness is established where the claimed range abuts a range disclosed in...more

Jones Day

Federal Circuit Provides Guidance on Obviousness of a Claimed Range of Values

Jones Day on

Patent applicants often draft claims to cover various ranges of physical or chemical characteristics. Of primary concern during prosecution are prior art documents that disclose similar, but not overlapping, ranges. In In re...more

Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt PC

Fresh From the Bench: Latest Federal Circuit Court Cases

Arendi S.A.R.L. v. Google LLC, Appeal No. 2016-1249 (Fed. Cir. Feb. 20, 2018) - In Arendi S.A.R.L. v. Google LLC, the Federal Circuit upheld the Patent Trial and Appeal Board’s (PTAB) obviousness determination following...more

Knobbe Martens

Arendi S.A.R.L. v. Google LLC

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Federal Circuit Summaries - Before Newman, Bryson, and Moore. Appeal from the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. Summary: Prosecution disclaimer occurred when an applicant explained why claims were amended and the Examiner...more

Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt PC

Fresh From the Bench: Latest Federal Circuit Court Cases

Berkheimer v. HP Inc., Appeal No. 2017-1437 (Fed. Cir. Feb. 8, 2018) - In Berkheimer v. HP Inc., the Federal Circuit reviewed the District Court’s summary judgment finding that certain claims of a patent were invalid as...more

Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.L.L.C.

The Board Gives Section 325(d) Sharp Teeth—Part II – The Petitioner's Criticality to Selecting and Using The Right Prior Art

This is the second of a three-part series discussing developments around Section 325(d). Part one appeared in our October 2017 newsletter and part three will appear in our December 2017 newsletter....more

Foley & Lardner LLP

CAFC Vacates USPTO Single Reference Obviousness Rejection For Inadequate Showing Of Expectation of Success

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In a split decision with Judge Lourie dissenting, the Federal Circuit vacated an obviousness rejection that had been affirmed in an ex parte appeal to the USPTO Patent Trial and Appeal Board. The decision was rendered in In...more

Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.L.L.C.

Why Design Patents Are Surviving Post-Grant Challenges

As of January 2017, the institution rate for Patent Trial and Appeal Board trials involving design patents was 37 percent. That is significantly lower than every other technology area and makes design patents the only...more

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