4 Key Takeaways | Trade Secret Update 2024 Legal Developments and Trends
New Developments in Obviousness-Type Double Patenting and Original Patent Requirements — Patents: Post-Grant Podcast
3 Key Takeaways | Corporate Perspectives on Intellectual Property
3 Key Takeaways | What Corporate Counsel Need to Know About Patent Damages
5 Key Takeaways | Rolling with the Legal Punches: Resetting Patent Strategy to Address Changes in the Law
Meet Meaghan Luster: Patent Litigation Associate at Wolf Greenfield
Legal Alert: USPTO Proposes Major Change to Terminal Disclaimer Practice
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Trending Now: An IP Podcast - Artificial Intelligence Patents & Emerging Regulatory Laws
John Harmon on the Evolving Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Intellectual Property
Are Your Granted Patents in Danger of a Post-Grant Double Patenting Challenge?
Patent Litigation: How Low Can You Go?
Rob Sahr on the Administration’s Aggressive Approach to Bayh-Dole Compliance
The Briefing: The Patent Puzzle: USPTO's Guidelines for AI Inventions
The Briefing: The Patent Puzzle: USPTO's Guidelines for AI Inventions (Podcast)
4 Key Takeaways | Updates in Standard Essential Patent Licensing and Litigation
Behaving Badly: OpenSky v. VLSI and Sanctions at the PTAB — Patents: Post-Grant Podcast
Scott McKeown Discusses PTAB Trends and Growth of Wolf Greenfield’s Washington, DC Office
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Trending Now: An IP Podcast - U.S. State Data Privacy Update
From Academia to the Marketplace: The Ins and Outs of University Spinout Licenses with Dan O’Korn
Wolf Greenfield Attorneys Preview What’s Ahead in 2024
Those following this blog knew change was coming to design patent obviousness in the LKQ v. GM decision by the en banc Federal Circuit. In its May 21, 2024 decision, the court overruled the long-standing Rosen-Durling test...more
In the mid-2000s, the U.S. Patent Office (USPTO) determined that reexaminations would be more consistent and legally correct if performed by a centralized set of experienced and specially trained Examiners. As a result, the...more
On March 18, 2024, the USPTO issued a memorandum to its Examiners reminding them of the resources and proper analysis for interpreting limitations under 35 U.S.C. § 112(f), which are commonly referred to as...more
On March 18, 2024, the US Patent & Trademark Office (PTO) issued a memorandum to patent examiners addressing means-plus-function and step-plus-function claim limitations and how to clearly articulate, in the prosecution...more
On February 27, 2024, the US Patent & Trademark Office (PTO) published updated guidance for examiners on how to make a proper determination of obviousness. The guidance expands upon and reinforces the legal framework for...more
Examiner interviews are a powerful but underutilized tool in patent prosecution. Last year, a whopping 75% of patent applications concluded without a single interview in their file history. This data is remarkable since many...more
On January 4, the USPTO announced the appointment of new leaders for the agency’s policy and communications teams. Sharon Israel will serve as the Chief Policy Officer and Director for International Affairs, and Jack...more
The Situation - Smart contracts are often mentioned in blockchain-themed patent applications and recited in claims. However, Examiners without a thorough understanding of this concept or unfamiliar with blockchain technology...more
How does an important U.S. government agency modernize its operations, especially during a global health crisis? What IT modernization approach can U.S. patent and trademark practitioners expect from the United States Patent...more
The lack of clarity in the law with regards to patent subject matter eligibility under 35 U.S.C. § 101 has made it difficult for patent attorneys to advise their clients with regards to patent protection for software...more
I. Introduction. “Prosecution” of a patent application is the process by which an application moves through the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) after being filed. Prosecution is often a more lengthy and...more
In This Issue - Gender Diversity in Patenting: Current Landscape and Recommendations - The gender gap in patenting is a current challenge that companies face. While this issue seems pervasive, companies and lawyers can...more
Droplets, Inc. v. E*TRADE Bank, No. 16-2504 (Fed. Cir. Apr. 19, 2018), is a cautionary tale on the need for careful patent prosecution. Because of an error in the priority claim, Droplets lost its right to claim an earlier...more
Claim terms are given a broadest reasonable interpretation (BRI) consistent with the specification, ideally. Occasionally, a USPTO examiner interprets a claim term in a manner different from what the applicant in a patent...more
In patent prosecution, the feedback loop between interested parties including patent prosecutors, inventors, and in-house counsel helps to provide the best patent applications and office action responses for a high quality...more
Due to the relatively short shelf life for some consumer products, it can be important to quickly obtain patent protection for such products. Obtaining patent protection early in the life of such products can help inventors...more
Preparing patent applications for examination at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) requires proficient writing, detailed knowledge of the requirements of the Patent Act, and technical acumen. Once a patent...more
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has launched a new Automated Interview Request (AIR) Form that allows practitioners to submit an online request for an interview with an examiner. The online form allows...more
Wandering through the aisles of iTunes for interesting podcasts, I came across several on psychotherapy. Wow, I thought to myself; I can sure use these! Many of them are hosted by women who have nice voices and who interview...more
The America Invents Act of 2011 introduced supplemental examination of patents as a post-grant process intended to limit expensive and unpredictable inequitable conduct litigation and improve patent quality. As codified, 35...more
This week, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) announced1 the Post-Prosecution Pilot Program (“P3”) for applicants to respond to a final rejection in a utility patent application. Under the P3, an applicant...more
The new Post-Prosecution Pilot ("P3") program provides a pathway for patent applicants to make an in-person presentation to a panel of patent examiners as an alternative to existing options for responding to final rejections....more
In its July 5, 2016 decision in Rapid Litigation Management Ltd and In Vitro, Inc. v. CellzDirect, Inc. and Invitrogen Corp., the Federal Circuit held that patent claims directed to an improved method of cryopreserving...more
On May 4, 2016, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) published a memorandum to assist patent examiners (“Examiners”) in crafting subject matter eligibility rejections and analyzing applicant responses to...more
The USPTO has issued new patent eligibility examples, including several examples relating to diagnostic methods and “nature-based” products. Surprisingly, most of the claims are said to satisfy 35 USC § 101. The USPTO also...more