Although the America Invents Act (AIA) was signed into law in September 2011, the “first inventor to file” provisions did not immediately take effect. However, they will take effect in less than two months. Are you ready? The shift to a first
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Clients often want to know how long it will take them to get a patent. Of course, whether they get one at all will depend on whether their invention is novel and non-obvious as well as how broadly their claims are drafted.
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Growing up in a pre-cable TV world, I played a lot of games such as Monopoly, Clue, Life, Chutes & Ladders, Checkers, Chess and countless others. With all of the cases coming out about statutory subject matter in the last few years,
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U.S. Patent Law requires that patent claims be sufficiently definite such that one of ordinary skill in the art could ascertain their metes and bounds. Accused infringers may seek to invalidate claims under 35 U.S.C. § 112, ¶ 2 if the claims
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In a recent newsletter, we discussed CLS Bank Int’l, et al. v. Alice Corp. Pty. Ltd. (Case No. 2011-1301)(Fed. Cir. 2012) and the Federal Circuit’s efforts to provide guidance as to the patentability of software in the wake of the Supreme Court’s
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In one of our recent posts, we discussed a technique (“poisoning the well”) that third parties can use to get the examiner who is handling a competitor’s patent application to consider prior art that is not currently of record. Instead of sending
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Many companies build an IP portfolio around particular products, and the portfolio evolves over time as new refinements and improvements to the original concept are developed. This sometimes raises the question of whether various different inventions should be consolidated into a single
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We have had the pleasure of working with some inventors who have enjoyed huge success by developing cutting-edge medical devices. This is an area that many people want to break into because it can be very profitable. However, the medical device
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In KSR v. Teleflex, the Supreme Court described numerous reasons for combining or modifying prior art references in an obviousness analysis. The Court also made clear that these reasons need not be explicitly set forth in the prior art references themselves. In
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Once a USPTO examiner issues a “final” rejection against your patent application, your options become limited. They include 1) filing a Notice of Appeal to the Board of Patent Appeals & Interferences, 2) filing a Request for Continued Examination (“RCE”), 3) abandoning
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