When Congress created inter partes review (“IPR”) proceedings in the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act, it included an estoppel provision to avoid duplicative validity challenges against the same patent claims.1 As set forth in...more
While petitioners are successful at least 60% of the time in getting the PTAB to institute trial on patents in the biotech, chemical, electrical/computer, mechanical, and business method arts, that is not the case for design...more
Powerful. Resilient. Ever-evolving. These characteristics of the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) were on full display in 2019. This past year the PTAB received more than 1,300 inter partes review (IPR), post grant review...more
3/5/2020
/ Claim Construction ,
Concurrent Litigation ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Covered Business Method Proceedings ,
Design Patent ,
Estoppel ,
Evidentiary Standards ,
Inter Partes Review (IPR) Proceeding ,
Motion to Amend ,
Motion To Stay ,
Patent Litigation ,
Patent Trial and Appeal Board ,
Patents ,
Post-Grant Review ,
Trial Practice Guidance
The PTAB Strategies and Insights newsletter provides timely updates and insights into how best to handle proceedings at the USPTO. It is designed to increase return on investment for all stakeholders looking at the entire...more
3/3/2020
/ Administrative Patent Judges ,
America Invents Act ,
Estoppel ,
Follow-On Patent Petitions ,
Inter Partes Review (IPR) Proceeding ,
Judicial Discretion ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Motion to Amend ,
Patent Litigation ,
Patent Trial and Appeal Board ,
Patents ,
USPTO
AVX Corporation, a company that manufactures and sells a variety of electronic components including capacitors, petitioned for inter partes review (IPR) of Presidio Components, Inc.’s patent directed to single-layer ceramic...more
2/18/2020
/ Appeals ,
Article III ,
Estoppel ,
Final Written Decisions ,
Injury-in-Fact ,
Inter Partes Review (IPR) Proceeding ,
Patent Litigation ,
Patent Ownership ,
Patent Trial and Appeal Board ,
Patents ,
Standing ,
Subsequent Litigation
GEP Power Products, Inc. petitioned for inter partes review (IPR) of two patents owned by Arctic Cat Inc. directed to an electrical-connection box for distributing power to various electrical components, including components...more
In 2019, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit docketed just over 650 appeals from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). That is the highest number since the Court started to hear post-American Invents Act...more
In Game and Tech Co. (“GAT”) v. Wargaming Grp. Ltd, the Federal Circuit shed some light on what qualifies as “service” for purposes of triggering the time-bar of 35 U.S.C. § 315(b). The Court also clarified the role that the...more
On October 29, 2019, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released its long-awaited interim final rule establishing a national regulatory framework for domestic hemp production, called the U.S. Domestic Hemp Production...more
12/4/2019
/ Cannabis Products ,
Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Hemp ,
Hemp Cultivation ,
Interstate Commerce ,
Personal Brands ,
Trademark Application ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademarks ,
Transportation Industry ,
USDA ,
USPTO
This document provides a factual overview of the Federal Circuit’s decision in Arthrex v. Smith & Nephew, discusses the court’s remedy, and addresses implications for litigants with Patent Trial and Appeal Board cases pending...more
12/3/2019
/ Administrative Patent Judges ,
Administrative Procedure Act ,
Appeals ,
Appointments Clause ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Final Written Decisions ,
Inter Partes Review (IPR) Proceeding ,
Patent Trial and Appeal Board ,
Patents ,
Pending Litigation ,
Post-Grant Review ,
Removal At-Will ,
Secretary of Commerce ,
Senate Confirmation Hearings ,
Severability Doctrine
The November 2019 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter discusses a recent Federal Circuit design patent decision, the USDA's new hemp rules, and Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton's acquisition of Tiffany & Co. We...more
The PTAB Strategies and Insights newsletter provides timely updates and insights into how best to handle proceedings at the USPTO. It is designed to increase return on investment for all stakeholders looking at the entire...more
11/27/2019
/ § 315(b) ,
Administrative Patent Judges ,
Administrative Proceedings ,
Appeals ,
Appointments Clause ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Evidence ,
Final Written Decisions ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Motivation to Combine ,
Patent Trial and Appeal Board ,
Patents ,
Prior Art ,
Service of Process ,
Time-Barred Claims
On October 29, 2019, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released its long-awaited interim rules allowing for the legal cultivation of hemp under the 2018 Farm Bill. With these rules in place, the USDA can start...more
11/8/2019
/ Agricultural Sector ,
Cannabis Products ,
Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Hemp ,
Hemp Cultivation ,
Interim Rule ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademarks ,
Tribal Lands ,
USDA
The October 2019 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter discusses three "lawful use" cannabis trademark decisions, a recent FTC settlement with a cosmetics company, and the USDA's newly issued interim rules...more
11/1/2019
/ Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) ,
Cosmetics ,
Domain Names ,
Fake Reviews ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
gTLD ,
Hemp ,
Interim Rule ,
Online Reviews ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Sunrise Periods ,
Trademarks ,
USDA
Yesterday, in Arthrex, Inc. v. Smith & Nephew, Inc., a panel of the Federal Circuit unanimously held that the appointment scheme for the Patent Trial and Appeal Board’s (PTAB) Administrative Patent Judges (APJ) is...more
11/1/2019
/ Administrative Patent Judges ,
Appeals ,
Appellate Rules ,
Appointments Clause ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Director of the USPTO ,
Final Written Decisions ,
Judicial Appointments ,
Patent Litigation ,
Patent Trial and Appeal Board ,
Pending Litigation ,
Presidential Appointments ,
Principle Officers ,
Remand ,
Remedial Actions ,
Removal At-Will ,
Secretary of Commerce ,
Senate Confirmation Hearings ,
Severability Doctrine ,
USPTO ,
Vacated
Many cannabis and investor news outlets recently reported that the United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) awarded what appears to be the first patent for a hemp strain to Denver-based Charlotte’s Web Holdings...more
In BioDelivery Sciences Int’l v. Aquestive Therapeutics, Inc., the Federal Circuit confirmed that the PTAB has broad discretion to reconsider institution decisions and terminate instituted proceedings even after trial has...more
10/1/2019
/ Administrative Reconsideration ,
Appeals ,
Inter Partes Review (IPR) Proceeding ,
Non-Appealable Decisions ,
Partial Institution ,
Patent Invalidity ,
Patent Litigation ,
Patent Trial and Appeal Board ,
Patent Validity ,
Patents ,
Post-Trial Order ,
Prosecutorial Discretion ,
SAS Institute Inc. v Iancu ,
Vacated
The PTAB Strategies and Insights newsletter provides timely updates and insights into how best to handle proceedings at the USPTO. It is designed to increase return on investment for all stakeholders looking at the entire...more
The July 2019 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter discusses the 30th anniversary of the Madrid Protocol and the opening of a new gTLD Sunrise period. It also features a recent firm alert about the FDA's...more
Products containing cannabidiol (“CBD”), a compound derived from cannabis, are part of a growing market that some analysts have projected will reach over $2.3 billion by 2022. CBD products—from gummy bears and pet products to...more
8/1/2019
/ Cannabis Products ,
Controlled Substances Act ,
Farm Bill ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Hemp ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Trademarks ,
USDA ,
USPTO
On April 17, 2019, U.S. District Judge William Martinez of the District of Colorado upheld the subject matter eligibility of United Cannabis Corporation’s (“UCANN”) patent claims covering liquid cannabinoid formulations....more
Products containing cannabidiol (“CBD”), a compound derived from cannabis plants, are part of a growing market segment that is on a fast-track to becoming global within the next five years. CBD-containing products, from gummy...more
Legal or not, the cannabis industry is booming. Indeed, analysts have projected that in North America alone it will grow from $9.2 billion in 2017 to $47.3 billion in 2027. Despite marijuana’s illegal status in most...more
6/14/2019
/ Canada ,
Cannabis Products ,
Conflicts of Laws ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
European Patent Office ,
Global Patent Prosecution ,
Hemp ,
Patent Cooperation Treaty ,
Patents ,
United Nations ,
USPTO ,
World Health Organization
Federal Circuit clarifies that a post-filing change in RPI status can trigger the § 315(b) time-bar and that there are exceptions to issue preclusion in IPR appeals -
On June 13, 2019, the Court of Appeals for the Federal...more
6/14/2019
/ § 315(b) ,
Appeals ,
Collateral Estoppel ,
Inter Partes Review (IPR) Proceeding ,
Issue Preclusion ,
Mergers ,
Patent Filings ,
Patent Trial and Appeal Board ,
Patents ,
Privity of Contract ,
Real Party in Interest ,
Time-Barred Claims
Despite marijuana’s illegal status in most countries, the patent arms race for cannabis has already begun. Indeed, analysts have projected that in North America alone the cannabis industry will grow from $9.2 billion in 2017...more