Patents, Native American Issues, USPTO

United States Patent and Trademark Office Calls for Tribal Comments on the World Intellectual Property Organization Treaty on...

WilmerHale on 3/10/2025

On January 17, 2025, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) published a request for written comments on a recently adopted treaty....more

U.S. Court Of Appeals For The Federal Circuit Has Held That Neither State Agencies Nor Indian Tribes Enjoy Sovereign Immunity,...

Ladas & Parry LLP on 7/16/2019

On July 20, 2018 in Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe, Allergan, Inc. v. Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc., a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (Dyk, Moore and Reyna JJ) held that Native American (“Indian”) Tribes do...more

Native American Tribes’ Patents Not Immune from Challenge in the Patent Trial and Appeal Board

Ladas & Parry LLP on 7/27/2018

On July 20 in Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe, Allergan, Inc. v. Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc., a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (Dyk, Moore and Reyna JJ) held that Native American (“Indian”) Tribes do not...more

Sovereign Shield Does Not Extend to Inter Partes Reviews

Dickinson Wright on 7/27/2018

On Friday, July 20, 2018, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit addressed the controversial application of sovereign immunity for inter partes review (“IPR”) in Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe v. Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc. In...more

Patent Transfer to Native American Tribe Does Not Immunize Patents from Inter Partes Review

Jones Day on 7/26/2018

This ruling may have eliminated the practice of transferring patents to Native American tribes for immunization from IPR proceedings. The Federal Circuit, in a matter of first impression, has ruled that tribal sovereign...more

Federal Circuit Affirms Tribal Immunity Does Not Apply In Inter Partes Review Proceedings Before The USPTO

Weintraub Tobin on 7/26/2018

In Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe et al. v. Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc. et al., the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit held that Native American tribal sovereign immunity does not apply in Inter Partes Review (“IPR”)...more

Senators and court complain of ‘anti-competitive’ transfer of patent rights to American Indian tribe

Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP on 10/19/2017

We have previously discussed antitrust implications of pharmaceutical companies’ efforts to maximize patent protection for their drugs. Consumers and generic drug makers, for instance, have alleged antitrust violations based...more

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