December 22, 2021
USPTO TO IMPLEMENT THE TRADEMARK MODERNIZATION ACT OF 2020
This is an informative alert to advise you of some U.S. Trademark Law changes going into effect in December 2021. Some regulations implementing the Trademark Modernization Act of 2020 include…
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July 27, 2017
INHERENTLY OBVIOUS FURTHER LIMITED BY THE COURT
Inherency often frustrates efforts to secure patents before the USPTO and defend them in court. Defeating or denying a patent generally requires showing that all elements of the claimed invention were previously known. Inherency provides an exception.
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July 07, 2017
PROVISION OF TRADEMARK ACT PROHIBITING REGISTRATION OF DISPARAGING MARKS RULED UNCONSTITUTIONAL
On June 19, 2017, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Matal v. Tam that the disparagement provision of Section 2(a) of the Lanham Act is facially unconstitutional because it violates the Free Speech clause of the First Amendment.
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July 28, 2016
The High Court’s Artificial and Fictitious Patent Test
Justice Benjamin N. Cardozo once cautioned that “there is a loss too of simplicity and directness, an increasing aspect of unreality, of something artificial and fictitious, when judges mask a change of substance, or gloss over its importance, by the suggestion of a consistency that is merely verbal and scholastic.” This article demonstrates that the Supreme Court’s jurisprudence concerning patent-eligible subject matter may be considered artificial and fictitious. Nonetheless, it is the law, and attorneys have a duty to respect it.
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May 11, 2016
Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016
A new law called the Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016 was approved unanimously by the Senate and almost unanimously approved by the House and on May 11, 2016, it was signed by the President into Public Law 114-153.
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February 29, 2016
Recovery of a reasonable royalty for patent infringement that occurred prior to the issuance of a patent
It is of interest to note that a patent owner can, under certain circumstances, recover a reasonably royalty for the infringement of a patent that occurred before the patent was issued.
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April 22, 2016
Patent Cases Pilot Program
Several years ago a law was passed (28 USC 137) that established the Patent Cases Pilot Program to enhance the expertise in patent cases among district court judges. The reason for this was that less than one percent of all federal district court cases are patent cases and a district court judge typically has a patent case proceed through trial only once every seven years.
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November 11, 2015
In Myriad, Did Supreme Court Confuse Its Own Precedent?
On June 13, 2013, the United States Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision in Association for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics Inc., and held that isolated genes are not patent eligible subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101. 569 U.S. ___, slip. op. at 13, 17 (2013).
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July 1, 2015
Patents for Humanity Program
The U.S. Patent & Trademark Office is once again accepting applications for recognition under the Patents for Humans Program. Patent for Humans is an annual program through which the USPTO recognizes patent owners who use their technology for humanitarian purposes. This year, applications will be accepted from July 1, 2015 through December 4, 2015.
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June 17, 2015
The Hague System for Industrial Designs has become effective in the United States.
The United States joined the Hague Systems for industrial designs effective May 13, 2015. This makes it possible to file a single application which, if there is no refusal, will enable an applicant to obtain design protection in the United States as well as in many other countries.
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June 17, 2015
A patent applicant qualifying for micro-entity status pays substantially reduced official fees in the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
The United States Patent and Trademark Office has for some time allowed applicants entitled to the so-called small-entity status to pay reduced official fees, and there is now also a provision where applicants who qualify for the micro-entity even more reduced fees.
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June 12, 2015
Patent Application Alert Service
The U.S. Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) has recently released a free Patent Application Alert Service. The system is easy to use and provides customized email alerts when a patent application of interest is published by the USPTO. U.S. Patent Applications are generally published 18 months after the earliest filing date for which a benefit is sought.
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