USPTO to start enforcing requirement that inventor oaths include reference to duty of disclosure In a notice dated yesterday, the USPTO announced that it will begin enforcing compliance with 37 C.F.R. § 1.63(b)(3), which requires that inventor oaths include an acknowledgement of the duty to disclose information material to patentability under 37 C.F.R. § 1.56. Oaths filed on or after June 1, 2008 will have to have the language […] Continue Reading →
Roundup of media coverage of oral arguments in Quanta v. LG After the Supreme Court heard oral argument last week in Quanta Computer, Inc. v. LG Electronics, Inc. (No. 06-937), the media and blogosphere have begun to weigh in on the arguments. You can find our take on the arguments in this post, or click below for a sampling of the coverage from other sources. A […] Continue Reading →
Oral argument in Quanta v. LG – some highlights On Wednesday, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in Quanta Computer, Inc. v. LG Electronics, Inc. (No. 06-937), a case regarding the scope of the concept of patent exhaustion, also known as the first sale doctrine. While the entirety of the arguments is worth a read (the transcript is available here), click below for our […] Continue Reading →
Patent Reform Act of 2007 to be passed in 2008? The internet is abuzz with talk that the much-maligned Patent Reform Act of 2007 (H.R. 1908 & S. 1145) may be passed in some form this month. A draft version of the Senate Judiciary Committee's report on the bill was released earlier this week, and while it does not contain any revised provisions, it does […] Continue Reading →
Timely article in Popular Science regarding the USPTO and its backlog The passage below is from an article in Popular Science, and is timely given the current workload of the USPTO and statements by Director Dudas that application pendency will continue to increase: The Patent Office Has Become A National Disgrace THE Patent Office, in Washington, D. C, recently sent to a workman in a chemical […] Continue Reading →
Tomorrow at the Supreme Court: Oral argument in Quanta v. LG Tomorrow the Supreme Court will hear oral argument in Quanta Computer, Inc. v. LG Electronics, Inc. (No. 06-937). The case will determine whether patent owners who sell products embodying their patents conditionally are able to recover damages for patent infringement if the products are subsequently sold beyond the scope permitted by the original sale. The […] Continue Reading →
Amici piling up in lawsuit challenging new claim and continuation rules Although the parties' motions for summary judgment have been filed, the amici keep coming forward in the consolidated lawsuits challenging the new claim and continuation rules. This brings the total number of amici in this case over 30, filing 19 20 (as of 1/4) total briefs. While the vast majority of amici filings support the […] Continue Reading →
AUTM releases 2006 annual licensing survey The Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) has released its summary report for the 2006 AUTM U.S. Licensing Activity Survey. The yearly survey is an ongoing effort of the organization to assist in informing the public about academic technology transfer professionals in order to improve public understanding of their activities. The 2006 Annual Report reflects […] Continue Reading →
Motions for summary judgment filed in lawsuit challenging claim and continuation rules Yesterday the parties filed their motions for summary judgment in the cases brought by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and Dr. Tafas challenging the USPTO's new claim and continuation limit rules. Apparently the earlier order setting the deadline for amicus briefs did not apply to the parties' motions, as earlier speculated. The deadline for briefs in opposition is […] Continue Reading →
Summary judgment deadline now December 27 in lawsuit challenging new rules; one more amicus joins in The deadline for summary judgment motions in the lawsuit challenging the new claim and continutation rules has apparenlty been extended from December 20 to December 27. While no modified scheduling order has yet appeared on PACER, in the court's order yesterday granting leave for the various amici who sought to file briefs at the summary […] Continue Reading →