Last month the Federal Circuit affirmed a PTAB inter partes review (IPR) decision finding that the University of Minnesota’s patent claim directed to the anti-cancer drug sofosbuvir was not adequately supported by the written...more
4/20/2023
/ Claim Construction ,
Disclosure ,
Inter Partes Review (IPR) Proceeding ,
Inventors ,
Patent Applications ,
Patent Invalidity ,
Patent Litigation ,
Patent Trial and Appeal Board ,
Patents ,
Prior Art ,
Section 112 ,
Written Descriptions
The Federal Circuit’s recent decision in Minerva Surgical, Inc. v. Hologic, Inc. provides a timeline reminder to inventors and patent applicants: Do not bring your invention into public view before you have filed your patent...more
Contrary to some predictions, assignor estoppel did not suffer the same fate in the hands of the Supreme Court as licensee estoppel in Lear v. Adkins. In fact, the doctrine, which essentially boils down to limiting an...more
The CARES Act enacted last week authorized the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and the United States Copyright Office (USCO) to extend deadlines for pending matters for applicant delays due to the effects of...more
Patent and trademark offices around the world have not been insulated from the effects of the global coronavirus pandemic. Many offices have directed their employees to transition to telework, and several have extended...more
3/23/2020
/ Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Filing Deadlines ,
Filing Requirements ,
France ,
Germany ,
India ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Office Closures ,
Patent Applications ,
Patents ,
Relief Measures ,
State of Emergency ,
Trademark Application ,
Trademarks ,
UK Intellectual Property Office (UK IPO) ,
USPTO
In Helsinn Healthcare S.A. v. Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc., the Supreme Court held on Tuesday that “private” or “confidential sales” are still prior art despite the amendments to U.S. patent law enacted by the America...more
1/24/2019
/ America Invents Act ,
Appeals ,
Assignment of Inventions ,
Confidentiality Agreements ,
Helsinn Healthcare SA v Teva Pharmaceuticals USA Inc ,
Inventions ,
On-Sale Bar ,
Patent Applications ,
Patent Infringement ,
Patents ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Pharmaceutical Patents ,
Public Use ,
Reaffirmation ,
Reversal ,
SCOTUS ,
Section 102 ,
Third-Party Relationships
The recent Actelion Pharmaceuticals Ltd. case brought to light a little-known quirk in how national stage patent applications affect the length of one’s patent term. That case involved a drug company losing five days of...more
5/17/2018
/ America Invents Act ,
Claim Construction ,
Fees ,
Filing Deadlines ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Patent Applications ,
Patent Cooperation Treaty ,
Patent Examinations ,
Patent Filings ,
Patent Reform ,
Patent Terms ,
Patents ,
PLTIA ,
Strategic Planning ,
USPTO
Recent court decisions have confirmed that inventors run the risk of destroying their patent rights in the U.S. and abroad if they publicize their inventions or put them “on sale” before applying for a patent....more
Patent owners and employers: Pay attention to the words in assignment and employment agreements that transfer patent ownership to you. A recent Federal Circuit case once again emphasizes the need to use particular language to...more
1/25/2018
/ Appeals ,
Blackberry ,
Employee Inventors ,
Employment Contract ,
HTC ,
IP Assignment Agreements ,
Patent Infringement ,
Patent Litigation ,
Patent Ownership ,
Patents ,
Technology Sector
A unanimous Supreme Court held in Samsung Electronics Co. v. Apple Inc. that Section 289 of the Patent Act does not demand that the entire, infringing end-user product be the basis for determining damages for design patent...more
12/10/2016
/ Apple v Samsung ,
Article of Manufacture ,
Calculation of Damages ,
Cell Phones ,
Component Parts Doctrine ,
Damages ,
Design Patent ,
Patent Infringement ,
Patents ,
Profits ,
Remand ,
Reversal ,
SCOTUS ,
Smartphones
Recent years have seen a wave of efforts to control frivolous patent-infringement lawsuits perpetrated by so-called patent trolls. These started with the America Invents Act of 2011 and have been followed by the Patent Law...more
After a long delay, the United States will soon implement two multilateral treaties that will assist U.S. applicants in securing design and utility patents in foreign countries. The Hague System Agreement will allow design...more