Avoiding Pitfalls in European filings Subsequent to Filing a United States Patent Application When filing a European patent application subsequent to a United States patent application, via Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) or otherwise, it is essential to draft the claims (and preferably the written description) with an eye to, and a working knowledge of, the intricacies of European Patent Laws. Merely appending foreign filing documents to a copy […] Continue Reading →
Australian High Court Rules Isolated Genes Unpatentable Whether or not genes are patent-eligible subject matter has been a much-discussed issue over the last several years. The 2013 decision by the U.S. Supreme Court in Ass’n for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics, Inc. established that that isolated DNA is a product of nature and therefore not patent eligible under Section 101 of Title […] Continue Reading →
Senate Bill Aimed at Combating Cyber Espionage Senator Carl Levin (D-MI) has introduced a bill called the "Deter Cyber Theft Act" to the Senate floor that would require the Director of National Intelligence to report annually to congressional committees concerning foreign countries that engage in economic and industrial cyber espionage relating to intellectual property and proprietary information owned by U.S. companies. Under […] Continue Reading →
Bring on the New Year – What is in Store for IP in 2014? Happy New Year to all of our FilewrapperÒ followers! We hope 2013 was a productive year and wish you the best in 2014. As the New Year quickly approaches we would like to share with you a few predictions for 2014 for you to look forward to and for which to prepare! · Increased opportunities […] Continue Reading →
Unitary Patent – The New European Patent Regime Starting in 2014, the European Union will provide another option for obtaining patent protection throughout the European Union and a more streamlined approach to enforcing or invalidating patents throughout the EU. In 2012 the European Parliament and European Council approved the “EU unitary patent package,” which establishes the European Unitary Patent and the Unified European […] Continue Reading →
USPTO Proposes Rule Changes for International Design Applications The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is seeking comments on it proposed rules for implementing the provisions of Title I of the Patent Law Treaties Implementation Act of 2012. The law is the implementing legislation for the 1999 Geneva Act of the Hague Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Industrial Designs (“the Hague Agreement”). The […] Continue Reading →
New and Useful – January 31, 2013 · In Soverain Software LLC v. Newegg Inc. the Federal Circuit vacated in part and reversed in part an Eastern District of Texas decision finding Newegg Inc. liable for infringement of U.S. Patent Nos. 5,715,314, 5,909,492, and 7,272,639, all relating to electronic commerce. The Federal Circuit offered clarifying insight on the obviousness doctrine. The background […] Continue Reading →
Digital Britain: The UK Government’s vision for a 21st century digital economy Last month, the UK Department for Culture, Media, and Sport released Digital Britain, a report regarding the future of communications infrastructure in the UK, how to deal with challenges of a digital economy (such as copyright infringement), and containing policy recommendations regarding how to move forward. Click below for our thoughts on the report and […] Continue Reading →
Supreme Court of Canada tightens obviousness standard The Supreme Court of Canada recently made significant changes to its obviousness standard for patentability. The case addressed a dispute arising between the brand-name pharmaceutical manufacturer, Sanofi, and the Canadian generic manufacturer, Apotex. The decision by the Supreme Court of Canada brings its obviousness standard closer to the standard recently set forth by the U.S. […] Continue Reading →
Ninth Circuit: First sale doctrine doesn’t apply to goods purchased abroad and imported to US In a decision last week, the Ninth Circuit reversed a district court's grant of summary judgment to a copyright defendant on the basis of the "first sale" doctrine, codified at 17 U.S.C. § 109(a). The defendant obtained the products bearing the copyright from a third party who legally purchased them outside the United States. The […] Continue Reading →