Federal Circuit dismisses another appeal by Apple Inc. By Joseph M. Hallman On November 10, 2021, in Apple Inc. v. Qualcomm Incorporated (Apple v. Qualcomm), the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (“Federal Circuit”) dismissed Apple Inc.’s (“Apple”) consolidated appeal from four decisions made by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (“PTAB”). The PTAB held that claims of patents owned by Qualcomm Incorporated (“Qualcomm”) […] Continue Reading →
When your own patent application counts as prior art: Beware the Continuation-In-Part By Cassie J. Edgar Often during patent prosecution new technologies, concepts and data grow out of an original filing. How can you protect those new innovations? The natural reaction is to file a child application off of the parent filing, in order to preserve the earlier priority date through a continuation or continuation-in-part (CIP) application. A continuation is limited […] Continue Reading →
Congressman/Inventor Introduces Legislation to “Fix” U.S. Patent System By Kirk M. Hartung On November 4th, Kentucky Representative, Thomas Massie, who is the named inventor on two dozen patents, has introduced a bill to the House Judiciary Committee which, if passed, would significantly change U.S. patent laws. The bill seeks to nullify some provisions of the America Invents Act (AIA) passed in 2011, as well as reverse some […] Continue Reading →
MVS Recognized Again By Best Lawyers “Best Law Firm” Rankings as a Top Law Firm By McKee, Voorhees & Sease is proud to be recognized by U.S. News & World Report and Best Lawyers® for their “Best Law Firms” Tier 1 rankings in Des Moines for Copyright Law, Intellectual Property Litigation, Patent Litigation, Patent Law, and Trademark Law. Firms included in the 2022 “Best Law Firms” list are recognized for professional […] Continue Reading →
USPTO CALLED TO STEP UP INTERAGENCY COOPERATION By Charles P. Romano, Ph.D. In the immediate wake of the Belcher v. Hospira case where the patent holder made contradictory statements to the USPTO and the FDA regarding prior art, Senators Leahy and Tillis called for “the creation of a smooth, predictable, and regular channel of information from other federal agencies to the Patent Office” in a letter to […] Continue Reading →
The Great Dichotomy: Patent Protection vs. Regulatory Approval By Cassie J. Edgar As a scientist in discovery mode, the primary focus is often on points of novelty and seeking patent protection for the invention. The supporting data in the patent application serves as proof that this is a unique innovation, has never been seen before, and overcomes key challenges. However, when the product is regulated, converse arguments […] Continue Reading →
Biden Names Winston & Strawn’s Vidal For USPTO Director By Heidi Sease Nebel President Biden announced today that he is nominating Kathi Vidal of Winston & Strawn as the new U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) Director. Vidal is a patent litigator and managing partner of the Silicon Valley office of Winston & Strawn, where she has been since 2017. Prior to that, she was with Fish & […] Continue Reading →
Psilocybin Patents Demonstrate Growth in the Psychedelics Market By Sarah M.D. Luth Public and medical interest in the use of psychedelics has steadily been expanding since the 1990s. Psilocybin is one of the most well-known psychedelic compounds. Psilocybin, also known as “magic mushrooms” is a compound produced by several species of fungi, and which has both psychoactive and hallucinogenic properties. Although psilocybin is still considered a Schedule […] Continue Reading →
MVS congratulates Dr. John McKay and our client, New West Genetics, for being featured on the cover of Genetics By Heidi Sease Nebel The article titled “Quantitative trait loci controlling agronomic and biochemical traits in Cannabis sativa” is published in this prestigious journal and makes up for lost time in understanding the genetics of important traits in Hemp. Understanding the genetic basis of complex traits is a fundamental goal of evolutionary genetics. Yet, the genetics controlling complex traits […] Continue Reading →
PVP Office Now Accepting Hemp Seed Deposits By Heidi Sease Nebel The USDA is now indicating that it has formalized arrangements with the National Laboratory for Germplasm Resources Preservation (NLGRP) to begin accepting Hemp Seed Deposits for Plant Variety Protection Applications. A seed deposit for a Plant Variety Protection Certificate acts as a “voucher” to prove that the application is accurate and that the applicant had […] Continue Reading →