In recent years, Congress has considered potential new laws for patent reform, typically changes to the system supported by patent owners. Two main areas of focus are “Section 101” and the “PTAB.” ...more
Introduction -
The Mayo/Alice subject-matter eligibility test has been a controversial topic since its creation. Many have argued that it leaves innovators, particularly in the software field, with uncertainty as to...more
The USPTO has released updated subject matter eligibility guidance that incorporates comments on the changes made in January 2019.The guidance is 22 pages long, with three appendices and 87 footnotes. Below are a few of the...more
10/21/2019
/ Abstract Ideas ,
CLS Bank v Alice Corp ,
Guidance Update ,
Judicial Exception ,
Patent Examinations ,
Patent Trial and Appeal Board ,
Patent-Eligible Subject Matter ,
Patents ,
Product of Nature Doctrine ,
Section 101 ,
USPTO
On May 22, 2019, a bipartisan committee of the U.S. Senate and House released a draft bill on § 101 reform, in a further attempt to reduce procedural obstacles for patent applicants.
The draft bill would change the...more
Yesterday Democrat and Republican legislators from both the Senate and the House of Representatives released a one page outline of a proposal to change the law of patent eligibility. The legislators supporting this proposal...more
4/23/2019
/ Abstract Ideas ,
CLS Bank v Alice Corp ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Mayo v. Prometheus ,
Patent Litigation ,
Patent-Eligible Subject Matter ,
Patents ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Section 101 ,
Senate Judiciary Committee ,
USPTO
On January 4th, the USPTO announced revised guidance for subject matter eligibility (Section 101 Revised Guidance) and stated it would take effect when published on Monday, January 7, 2019....more
For both patent Applicants and Patent Office Examiners, the Supreme Court’s 2014 Alice Corp. v. CLS Bank International decision has created ongoing uncertainty as to the proper scope of subject matter that should be excluded...more
In the recent decision of Data Engine Technologies LLC v. Google LLC, the Federal Circuit may have expanded how factual questions underpin subject matter eligibility analysis under Section 101. Since the two-part eligibility...more
10/23/2018
/ Appeals ,
CLS Bank v Alice Corp ,
Computer-Related Inventions ,
Extrinsic Evidence ,
Obviousness ,
Patent Infringement ,
Patent Invalidity ,
Patent-Eligible Subject Matter ,
Patents ,
Question of Fact ,
Section 101 ,
Section 103
Over the last year, several Federal Circuit judges have filed opinions lamenting the state of the case law that interprets the abstract idea exception to patent eligibility under 35 U.S.C. § 101. For example, Judge Linn...more
Machine learning is one of the fastest growing categories of granted patents[1]. However, there do not appear to be many examples of patent infringement lawsuits where machine learning claims have been analyzed by the courts...more
9/18/2018
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
CLS Bank v Alice Corp ,
Computer-Related Inventions ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Patent Infringement ,
Patent Invalidity ,
Patent Litigation ,
Patent-Eligible Subject Matter ,
Patents ,
Predictive Analytics ,
Section 101
In Core Wireless Licensing S.A.R.L. v. LG Electronics, Inc., the Federal Circuit held that user interface claims are patent eligible under 35 U.S.C. § 101 because they “recite a specific improvement over prior systems,...more
Federal Circuit’s Enfish Decision and PTO Guidelines Should Give Hope to Patentees -
In the last few years, U.S. Courts have drastically changed their interpretation of the law governing patent eligibility, 35 U.S.C. §...more