Patentability and Patent Protection: Is the Pendulum Starting to Swing Back? The latest US Chamber of Commerce Global Innovation Policy Center’s International IP Index still places the US on top overall for intellectual property. However, this is due to strength in enforcement of copyrights and trademarks, and improvements in identifying counterfeit goods before they enter the country. According the to Index, the US has dropped to […] Continue Reading →
Constitutionality of Inter Partes Reviews: A Look at Supreme Court Oral Arguments in Oil States The enactment of the AIA in 2011, inter partes review (IPR), has been available as a method to challenge the validity of a patent in the US Patent and Trademark Office. A total of 6139 IPR petitions (92% of all petitions) have been filed with the Patent Trial and Appeals Board (PTAB) since that time. […] Continue Reading →
The Most Difficult Definition: Considerations for Defining “Genetically Modified Organism” A patent applicant is free to act as their own lexicographer in drafting an application and may define terms as they see fit. Should a word not be defined explicitly in the application, the Patent Office will then give the term “the broadest reasonable interpretation according to a person having ordinary skill in the art” […] Continue Reading →
Post-Grant Reviews under the America Invents Act The America Invents Act implemented the Post-grant Review (PGR) process as a new means of challenging existing patents. PGR differs from Inter Partes Review (IPR) in that PGR allows for a wider array of invalidity challenges. One example of a new challenge allowed under PGR is the ability to challenge the claims as being indefinite. […] Continue Reading →
USPTO Issues Rule Amendments for Trials Before PTAB The United States Patent and Trademark Office issued finalized amendments to the rules for trials before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. The updated rules were issued in a Federal Register Notice on April 1, 2016, which may be found here. The rules put into final form most of the amendments proposed on August 20, […] Continue Reading →
PTAB’s Interpretation of 35 USC 315(b) Continues to Stand: Dismissal Without Prejudice Effectively Nullifies the One Year Bar to Bring an IPR The USPTO’s Patent Trial and Appeal Board’s holding that the voluntary dismissal of a lawsuit, without prejudice, effectively nullifies the service of the complaint for purposes of triggering the one year bar in 35 U.S.C. § 315(b) to petition for the institution of an inter partes review (IPR) stands in Shaw Indus. Grp. v. Automated […] Continue Reading →
“Unavailable” Joint Inventor after the America Invents Act All applications for United States patent must include an oath or declaration signed by each inventor. The oath or declaration must be furnished to the United States Patent and Trademark Office no later than the date on which the issue fee is paid, but preferably on the same day as the non-provisional application is filed to […] Continue Reading →
Reminder: Are You Monitoring Your Competitors’ Patents for Post-Grant Review? There were many changes implemented by the USPTO as a result of the America Invents Act (“AIA”or generally Patent Reform). One these is the post-grant procedure (also referred to as Post-Grant Review (PGR)) for challenging the validity of a competitor’s patent. However, there is a very limited time frame during which this useful procedure can […] Continue Reading →
The Continuing Saga of the First IPR at the Federal Circuit The Federal Circuit has simultaneously issued an order and an opinion in In re Cuozzo Speed Technologies, LLC, previously discussed on Filewrapper® as being the first appeal arising from an inter partes review (“IPR‚¬) . The order issued by the Federal Circuit is a denial of the Petition for En Banc Rehearing to consider […] Continue Reading →