The judicially-derived patent-law doctrine of “assignor estoppel” prevents an inventor from assigning a patent to another for value and then later arguing in litigation that the patent is invalid. In Minerva Surgical Inc. v....more
The Constitution’s Article II “Appointments Clause” requires the President, with the advice and consent of the Senate, to appoint “officers” of the United States. In United States v. Arthrex, Inc., the Supreme Court reviewed...more
6/24/2021
/ Administrative Patent Judges ,
Appointments Clause ,
Arthrex Inc v Smith & Nephew Inc ,
Executive Branch ,
Executive Powers ,
Inter Partes Review (IPR) Proceeding ,
Patent Trial and Appeal Board ,
Patents ,
SCOTUS ,
United States v Arthrex Inc ,
USPTO
The Appointments Clause in Article II of the Constitution requires the President, with the advice and consent of the Senate, to appoint “officers” of the United States. Many of us are familiar with this process as it applies...more
Last year, in St. Regis Mohawk Tribe v. Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc., the Federal Circuit rejected the use of tribal sovereign immunity as a defense to the institution of an IPR. We questioned in a previous alert whether the...more
The Shutdown -
The shutdown of parts of the federal government began on December 22, 2018. The shutdown has now become the longest partial government shutdown in American history....more
With H. 4732 (and amendment H. 4868) sitting on Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker’s desk, Massachusetts is finally on the verge of adopting the Uniform Trade Secrets Act (“UTSA”). The UTSA was published by the Uniform Law...more
The Federal Circuit just issued its en banc decision in Nantkwest v. Iancu, concluding that the proper statutory construction of Section 145 of the patent statute, which allows patent applicants to file actions in a federal...more
On Friday, June 22, 2018, in WesternGeco LLC v. Ion Geophysical Corp., No. 16-1011, the U.S. Supreme Court held that damages awards for infringement under 35 U.S.C. §271(f)(2) may include foreign lost profits. The ruling will...more
6/27/2018
/ 35 U.S.C. § 271(f)(2) ,
35 U.S.C. § 284 ,
Appeals ,
Damages ,
Domestic Injury ,
Extraterritoriality Rules ,
Foreign Sales ,
Lost Profits ,
Patent Act ,
Patent Infringement ,
Patents ,
Remand ,
SCOTUS ,
Vacated ,
WesternGeco LLC v Ion Geophysical Corporation
The Supreme Court recently handed down two highly anticipated decisions concerning inter partes review (IPR) challenge proceedings in the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB). In Oil States Energy Services, LLC v. Greene’s...more
The Supreme Court on May 22, 2017 issued its highly anticipated decision in TC Heartland LLC v. Kraft Food Brands Group LLC, regarding the proper interpretation of the patent venue statute, 28 U.S.C. § 1400(b). In a unanimous...more
The Supreme Court, in a 7-1 decision written by Justice Alito, has held that laches cannot be invoked as a defense against any claim for damages in a patent case brought within the 6-year limitation on damages prescribed by...more
Oregon enacts statute to make improper patent license demands a violation of its unlawful trade practices law -
In March 2013, Senate Bill 1540 was signed into law by the governor of Oregon. The law makes patent...more
Oregon introduces bill to make improper patent license demands a violation of its unlawful trade practices law -
In February 2014, Senate Bill 1540 was filed, which would make patent trolling a violation of the...more
9/4/2014
/ Attorney's Fees ,
Cartwright Act ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Demand Letter ,
Google ,
Legislative Agendas ,
License Agreements ,
New Legislation ,
Patent Infringement ,
Patent Trolls ,
Patents ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
Implications of Alice v. CLS Bank -
Late last week, the United States Supreme Court decided Alice Corp. Pty. Ltd. v. CLS Bank Int’l, et al., a case the technology community had hoped would clarify what kinds of...more
Earlier this month, the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals issued its en banc decision in CLS Bank v. Alice Corp. (CLS), which was expected to clarify the standard for patent eligibility of computer-implemented inventions....more