Attorney’s exclusion from USPTO practice based on ties to invention promotion firm affirmed Unsuspecting inventors aren't the only ones hurt by fraudulent invention promotion firms. As a case decided today by the Federal Circuit shows, the attorneys they employ can also be harmed. Of course, in this case, the attorney isn't a very sympathetic figure. He was on the payroll of an invention promotion firm in the 1990s, […] Continue Reading →
Post-KSR: Expert testimony enough for infringer to avoid summary judgment of no invalidity? In a nonprecedential ruling yesterday, the Federal Circuit reversed a district court's grant of summary judgment of no obviousness. The twist was that the only evidence in the record cited by the court as demonstrating a genuine issue of material fact was the testimony of the defendant's expert witness that there would have been a […] Continue Reading →
Means-plus-function claim must recite some structure, “known equipment” not enough In a decision today, the Federal Circuit affirmed a district court's finding of invalidity of a several claims of a patent for indefiniteness under 35 U.S.C. § 112, ¶ 2. The patent specification did not describe a corresponding structure for the claim limitation "control means" as required by 35 U.S.C. § 112, ¶ 6, but […] Continue Reading →
Federal Circuit: no jurisdiction over contempt appeal, but dissolution of injunction affirmed In a decision Wednesday, the Federal Circuit dismissed an appeal of a contempt order for lack of jurisdiction and ruled that the district court did not abuse its discretion in dissolving a preliminary injunction. The defendant was found in contempt of a preliminary injunction, but also found two new pieces of prior art that made […] Continue Reading →
Federal Circuit finds disclosure not public use because invention not actually “used” In a decision today, the Federal Circuit reversed a district court's finding of invalidity of two patents based on the public use bar of 35 U.S.C. § 102(b). A product capable of embodying the claimed inventions was disclosed to several individuals, including potential investors, before the critical date of the patents. The court nevertheless found […] Continue Reading →
Federal Circuit addresses claim construction, on-sale and public use bars, and DJ jurisdiction In a decision Friday, the Federal Circuit vacated in part a district court's claim construction of a several terms as well as its decision to find no infringement of patents owned by Honeywell. The court did, however, affirm the district court's retention of jurisdiction over the several withdrawn claims and the decision that Honeywell's pre-critical […] Continue Reading →
“Aspirina” descriptive of analgesic goods; denial of registration affirmed In a decision today, the Federal Circuit affirmed a decision by the TTAB that the term "ASPIRINA" is descriptive of analgesics, and therefore not subject to trademark protection in the United States absent a showing of secondary meaning. While the evidence of record was conflicting as to whether ASPIRINA was descriptive, given the deferential standard […] Continue Reading →
Federal Circuit affirms damage award to Monsanto against farmer who saved seed In the latest in a series of appeals to the Federal Circuit, the court affirmed a jury's award of damages to Monsanto for infringement of patents relating to glyphosate resistant plants. The defendant, a farmer, had saved seeds from his crops from one growing season to the next in violation of the terms of the […] Continue Reading →
Federal Circuit affirms inequitable conduct finding, Judge Newman not happy about it In a second opinion today, the Federal Circuit affirmed a district court's finding of inequitable conduct based on the nondisclosure of three pieces of information to the USPTO. The patentee had two similar pending applications at the USPTO, and in fact had cited the same prior art in both applications via information disclosure statements. In […] Continue Reading →
Federal Circuit reverses lost profits award and finding of personal liability In a decision today, the Federal Circuit reversed a jury's award of damages based on lost profits as well as personal liability against the defendant corporation's principal. The district court let the issue of lost profits damages go to the jury, but the Federal Circuit determined that, as a matter of law, the court should […] Continue Reading →