Is it time for examination by request at the USPTO? By Charles P. Romano, Ph.D. When the first inventor to file (FITF) provision of the America Invents Act AIA became effective in 2013, US patent law was only in part harmonized with patent law in most other Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) countries. One important difference between the US and many other PCT countries is that US patent examination fees are due […] Continue Reading →
Updates on Unitary Patent and Unified Patent Court Utilization in Europe – Part 2 By Jill N. Link, Pharm.D. We previously provided an overview of the Unitary Patent as an option to replace the national validation process of a granted Europe patent for participating member states, as well as some commentary on the utilization of the Unitary Patent since its June 1, 2023 inception. In this post, the role of the Unified Patent Court […] Continue Reading →
Bar Associations Support the Rule of Law By Kirk M. Hartung The American Bar Association (ABA), in response to Executive orders and comments from elected representatives, has publicly stated on at least three occasions its general support for the rule of law, the legal profession, and an independent judiciary. The ABA is a voluntary bar organization with over 400,000 lawyer members, which represent approximately 25% of […] Continue Reading →
Updates on Unitary Patent and Unified Patent Court Utilization in Europe – Part 1 By Jill N. Link, Pharm.D. If you have sought international patent protection in the last two years, you have likely received information about Unitary Patents and the Unified Patent Court in Europe. If not, let me introduce you to the Unitary Patent and the Unified Patent Court. The Unitary Patent became an option for validations of a European patent upon […] Continue Reading →
Legislative Attempts to Limit Federal Court Injunctions By Kirk M. Hartung Iowa’s Chuck Grassley, the longest sitting Senator in Congress (44 years) and chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, commented on recent federal court injunctions relating to Presidential executive orders. In part, Grassley states that there is a “bipartisan problem of universal injunctions.” He further asserted that “in most cases, an injunction should only be against […] Continue Reading →
MVS Helps Guide Drake Law Students to Washington D.C. By Nicholas J. Krob At McKee, Voorhees & Sease (MVS), we take immense pride in contributing to the growth of the legal profession by mentoring and supporting the next generation of attorneys. One way we do this is by coaching the Drake Law School Intellectual Property Moot Court Team. This year, Mike Gilchrist and Nick Krob had the honor […] Continue Reading →
Patent Panic Button: Why CRISPR Titans are Revoking Their Own Patents By Cassie J. Edgar Gene editing technology has revolutionized molecular biology, offering unprecedented precision in genetic modifications and a lighter regulatory pathway compared to conventional transgenic approaches. However, the intellectual property landscape surrounding CRISPR has historically been overshadowed with disputes and unexpected developments. A recent and notable twist is the self-revocation of two seminal European patents by the team led by […] Continue Reading →
John Squires Nominated as Under Secretary of Commerce for IP and USPTO Director By Ashley E. Holland John A. Squires has been nominated to serve as the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The nomination was sent to the Senate Judiciary Committee on March 10, 2025. Squires brings decades of IP experience to the role, having served as Chief Intellectual […] Continue Reading →
Dewberry v. Dewberry: Supreme Court Clarifies Trademark Damages Landscape By Christine Lebron-Dykeman On February 26, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court, in Dewberry Group Inc. v. Dewberry Engineers Inc., Case No. 23-900 (U.S. Feb. 26, 2025) unanimously held that a trademark owner cannot recover the profits of an infringer’s affiliates if the affiliates were not also identified as defendants in the case. The plaintiff in the case, Dewberry Engineers, […] Continue Reading →
USPTO CUTS MAY BE LOOMING By Kirk M. Hartung A joint memo dated February 26, 2025, from the U.S. Office of Management Budget and the U.S. Office of Personnel Management may lead to staff reductions at the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The memo provides guidance to the Department of Government Efficiency Workforce Optimization Initiative. The memo begins by acknowledging that the federal […] Continue Reading →