Since the inception of the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (“PTAB”) in 2012, design patents obtained a higher rate of favorable results in Inter Partes Reviews (“IPRs”) and Post Grant Reviews (“PGRs”) than utility patents. For...more
On May 21, 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, sitting en banc, overruled more than 40 years of precedent defining the design patent obviousness standard. The decision eliminates the Rosen-Durling test,...more
Not surprisingly, 2023 was another notable year for design rights around the globe. However, nowhere more than the U.S. did we see court decisions that will, in the case of one, and could in the case of another, have...more
2/8/2024
/ America Invents Act ,
Appeals ,
CAFC ,
Design Patent ,
EU ,
Innovation Patent ,
Innovative Technology ,
Intellectual Property Litigation ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
International Trade Commission (ITC) ,
Investigations ,
Patent Litigation ,
Patent Trial and Appeal Board ,
Section 337 ,
USPTO
Not surprisingly, 2023 was another notable year for design rights around the globe. However, nowhere more than the U.S. did we see court decisions that will, in the case of one, and could in the case of another, have...more
Directors Tracy-Gene G. Durkin, Deirdre M. Wells, Daniel A. Gajewski, and Ivy Clarice Estoesta will present the webinar "2023 Design Patents Year in Review: Analysis and Trends" on Tuesday, January 30, 2024 at 1:00 p.m. EST....more
For the first time in over five years, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit will be hearing a patent case en banc. The Court has agreed to hear LKQ Corporation v. GM Global Technology Operations LLC, which...more
Last year, in our inaugural issue of “The Year in Review,” we reported that since the landmark jury verdict in the IP litigation between Apple and Samsung in 2012, which awarded more than $1B to Apple for infringement of...more
2/22/2023
/ Appeals ,
Design Patent ,
Intellectual Property Litigation ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
International Trade Commission (ITC) ,
Patent Applications ,
Patent Infringement ,
Patent Litigation ,
Patent Registration ,
Patent Trial and Appeal Board ,
Patents
Last year, in our inaugural issue of “The Year in Review,” we reported that since the landmark jury verdict in the IP litigation between Apple and Samsung in 2012, which awarded more than $1B to Apple for infringement of...more
2/21/2023
/ Anticipation ,
Appeals ,
Article of Manufacture ,
Australia ,
Chile ,
China ,
Claim Construction ,
Damages ,
Design Patent ,
EU ,
Exclusion Orders ,
Final Written Decisions ,
Foreign Patent Applications ,
India ,
Injunctive Relief ,
Intellectual Property Litigation ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Inter Partes Review (IPR) Proceeding ,
International Trade Commission (ITC) ,
Jury Verdicts ,
Likelihood of Success ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Noninfringement ,
Obviousness ,
Patent Applications ,
Patent Infringement ,
Patent Invalidity ,
Patent Litigation ,
Patent Registration ,
Patent Trial and Appeal Board ,
Patents ,
Precedential Opinion ,
Prior Art ,
Remedies ,
Reversal ,
Section 337 ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Summary Judgment ,
The Hague System ,
Trade Dress ,
United Arab Emirates (UAE) ,
USPTO
Following the successful release of the firm's inaugural year-in-review report last year, we will again be hosting a webinar featuring the highlights of our 2023 report. Webinar speakers will provide an overview and analysis...more
From consumer products to graphical user interfaces to pharmaceuticals and medical devices, design patents have become essential tools in the IP toolkit for companies of all sizes. Not only are they relatively inexpensive and...more
This year, we will mark the 10-year anniversary of the first jury verdict in the landmark IP litigation between Apple and Samsung, which resulted in the jury awarding more than $1B to Apple. More than $500M of that award was...more
3/3/2022
/ Appeals ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Design Patent ,
Intellectual Property Litigation ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
International Trade Commission (ITC) ,
Patent Infringement ,
Patent Litigation ,
Patent Trial and Appeal Board ,
Patents ,
Utility Patents
This year, we will mark the 10-year anniversary of the first jury verdict in the landmark IP litigation between Apple and Samsung, which resulted in the jury awarding more than $1B to Apple. More than $500M of that award was...more
3/2/2022
/ Anticipation ,
Appeals ,
Article of Manufacture ,
Australia ,
Cease and Desist Orders ,
China ,
Design Patent ,
EU ,
Exclusion Orders ,
Final Written Decisions ,
Foreign Patent Applications ,
Injunctive Relief ,
Intellectual Property Litigation ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Inter Partes Review (IPR) Proceeding ,
International Trade Commission (ITC) ,
Korea ,
Nexus ,
Nonobvious ,
Ornamental Design ,
Patent Applications ,
Patent Filings ,
Patent Infringement ,
Patent Invalidity ,
Patent Litigation ,
Patent Registration ,
Patent Trial and Appeal Board ,
Patents ,
Post-Grant Review ,
Precedential Opinion ,
Prior Art ,
Remand ,
Reversal ,
Section 102 ,
Section 103 ,
Section 337 ,
Substantial Evidence ,
Summary Judgment ,
The Hague System ,
USPTO ,
Utility Patents ,
Vacated
In conjunction with the forthcoming release of the firm's inaugural year-in-review report, speakers will offer case summaries and analysis of particularly significant design patent updates and trends. Specifically, the...more
2/23/2022
/ Design Patent ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
International Trade Commission (ITC) ,
Patent Applications ,
Patent Infringement ,
Patent Litigation ,
Patent Prosecution ,
Patent Trial and Appeal Board ,
Patents ,
USPTO ,
Webinars
Product design holds tremendous monetary value globally. This often leads to successful designs falling victim to knock-offs that can damage brand loyalty and reduce revenue. Design patents, which protect the ornamental...more
Two important, but sometimes overlooked issues in patent prosecution, particularly for companies with worldwide patent portfolios, are: 1) when a foreign filing license must be obtained; and 2) how to determine when an export...more
8/1/2020
/ EU ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Filing Requirements ,
Foreign Patent Applications ,
Germany ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
IP License ,
ITAR ,
Multinationals ,
Open General Export Licences (OGELs) ,
Patent Cooperation Treaty ,
Patent Portfolios ,
Patent Prosecution ,
USPTO ,
WIPO
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 October 2018 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter discusses how the USPTO determines similarity to prior-filed marks, the considerations of protecting a mark in a foreign language, and the new gTLD...more
The Hague Agreement, the international registration system for industrial designs, continues to grow as Canada will become its newest member on November 5, 2018. As we reported back in January, Russia also joined the Hague...more
Two years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court clarified the test for determining when a three dimensional design for a “useful article” is copyrightable, resolving an issue that had divided the federal circuit courts for years....more
The July 2018 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter discusses how to maintain rights in core trademarks as brands evolve, a reminder regarding importer and exporter liability for shipping counterfeit goods,...more
8/1/2018
/ Brand ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Counterfeiting ,
Domain Names ,
Exports ,
gTLD ,
Imports ,
SCOTUS ,
Sunrise Periods ,
Trademarks
The July 2018 issue of Sterne Kessler's The Goods on IP® discusses developments on copyright infringement lawsuit timing, prosecuting consumer product claims that include conjunctive limitations, and an update on membership...more
8/1/2018
/ Canada ,
Claim Construction ,
Consumer Product Companies ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Design Patent ,
Foreign Patent Applications ,
Patent Applications ,
Patent Trial and Appeal Board ,
Patents ,
The Hague System ,
USPTO
The April 2018 issue of Sterne Kessler's The Goods on IP® discusses prosecuting consumer product claims that include “process” limitations, the doctrine of aesthetic functionality in design patents, and issues with licensee...more
The aesthetic-functionality doctrine is a concept in trademark law that can preclude trademark protection for elements of trade dress deemed to be aesthetically pleasing; the doctrine can come into play when a trade dress...more
The April 2018 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® discusses the application of aesthetic functionality to design patents and lists the new gTLD Sunrise periods.
...more