In This Issue:

- Prior Art Redefined Under the AIA

- PTAB Holds a Firm Line on Additional Discovery

- The Art of Prior Art Searching

- Anticipating a Federal Trade Secret Law

- Trademark Cases Pending Before the U.S. Supreme Court

- Excerpt from Prior Art Redefined Under the AIA:

The America Invents Act’s (“AIA’s”) overhaul of the U.S. Patent law system has significantly redefined what constitutes available prior art that can be used to reject patent applications or invalidate patents. Thanks to the AIA changes which took effect on March 16, 2013, the AIA has both expanded as well as contracted the universe of available prior art. As pre-AIA patents and patent applications will continue to exist at least until March 15, 2034, not counting patent term extensions or adjustments, practitioners must continue to grapple with both pre-AIA as well as AIA rules, particularly with respect to AIA patent applications claiming priority to pre-AIA applications. Currently, there are no court decisions interpreting AIA 35 U.S.C. § 102.

In this article, we will discuss how the AIA expanded the definition of prior art, describe the AIA § 102 prior art exceptions, and suggest strategies that practitioners can consider in dealing with prior art and transitional applications.