First Cannabis-Related Patent Makes its Way through the Federal Courts: What it Teaches, and What it Does Not

By Blog Staff

In the past 25 years, there has been substantial growth surrounding the developments within the cannabis industry, particularly involving intellectual property protections. With legalization of cannabis gaining traction across the United States, any court guidance can provide a foundation for those seeking patent protection. Opportunely, on April 17, 2019, The District Court for the District […]

Judicial and Executive Branches split over Subject Matter, New Legislation may be Coming

Earlier this month the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) heard another appeal in the Cleveland Clinic v. True Health cases. In their appeal, one of Cleveland Clinic’s arguments that their claims were valid was because Skidmore deference should apply to the Examiner’s decision to allow the application to issue in light […]

Resolving Circuit Splits: Supreme Court Addresses Issues Regarding Legal Fees

By Blog Staff

On March 4, 2019, the United States Supreme Court granted certiorari in Iancu v. NantKwest, Inc. to settle the debate over what “all the expenses” means under the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s (USPTO) win-or-lose attorney fee policy. This controversial policy involves seeking attorneys’ fees from applicants, regardless of the outcome of a case. During […]

Protecting Your Nanotechnology Inventions – Part 4: Don’t Forget About Trade Secret Protection

By Jonathan L. Kennedy

When you have a new invention, the right question to ask at the outset is whether you want to consider patenting it. This is important because many common activities in research and commercialization can create a bar to patent protection or at least start a one-year clock by which a patent must be filed. Some […]

2018 Farm Act has important IP Implications

By Heidi Sease Nebel

At long last, the 2018 Farm bill has been approved by Congress and forwarded to the President for signature. As I blogged earlier, the bill has important Intellectual Property Implications. The first is that it adds PVP protection for asexually reproduced plants. The  addition will allow asexually reproduced plants, which are now protectable under the […]

CRISPR: Broad Institute Holds onto its Piece of Pie, and it’s Delicious!

On Monday, September 10th, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) upheld the decision from the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) on the interference between the Broad Institute and the University of California. The PTAB held, and the CAFC upheld, that given the difference between prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells, one skilled in […]

Protecting Your Nanotechnology Inventions – Part 2: Defining Your Invention

By Jonathan L. Kennedy

Have you invented materials with improved properties, such that you can seek to protect materials having those properties? Have you invented materials with a new structure such that you can seek protection of that structure beyond your specific species of materials? Have you invented a method that can be applied to items broader than your […]

An IPR Appellant Must Establish an Injury to Have Standing

By Blog Staff

In JTEKT Corp. v. GKN Auto. Ltd., Appeal No. 2017-1828 (Fed. Cir. Aug. 3, 2018), the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) dismissed an inter partes review (IPR) appeal due to lack of standing. The requirement for an appellant to establish an injury in fact remains firm. JTEKT petitioned for an […]

Patent Rights are NOT Monopoly Rights

By Luke T. Mohrhauser

There has been a long believed and conveyed statement that patent rights provide a “legal monopoly”. While this may be a simple way to explain the rights held by one issued patent, this is simply not true. Monopolies, at their core, attempt to control a market or an aspect of a market. Patents provide protection […]

Protecting Your Nanotechnology Inventions – Part 1: Defining Your Space

By Jonathan L. Kennedy

In a recent post, I discussed the increasing focus on nanotechnology research including the growing number of patents issued and government funding in nanotechnology research. Obtaining the strongest and broadest protection for your nanotechnology should be a focus of any research and intellectual property (IP) strategy. There are things that can be done during research […]