IP News Alerts
A Secret Sale Might be Prior Art and Bar Patentability
January 31, 2019
Under 35 U.S.C. § 102, a sale or offer for sale of an invention may bar patentability. Prior to enactment of the AIA in March 2013, § 102 barred patentability of an...
USPTO Updates Guidance on Subject Matter Eligibility - Improving Chances for Grant of Software Related Patent Applications
January 28, 2019
By: Philip T. Mazoki and
The USPTO published revised guidelines enumerating subject matter groupings of abstract ideas and clarifying that a claim reciting a judicial exception is patent eligible if the...
Trade Dress Revival Could Lead to Exclusion Order Under Section 337
November 6, 2018
By: Susan G. L. Glovsky and Patrick A. Quinlan
Under Section 337 of the Tariff Act, the International Trade Commission (ITC) “shall direct” that articles it determines violate Section 337 be excluded from entry into...
Supreme Court Includes Lost Foreign Profits In Patentee's Recovery
June 26, 2018
By: Susan G. L. Glovsky and Lawrence P. Cogswell III,, Ph.D.
Damages adequate to compensate for infringement include lost foreign profits when the underlying infringement is for supplying components of a patented invention in or from the United...
Federal Circuit Decides that State Law is Preempted by Biosimilar Act in Amgen v. Sandoz
December 19, 2017
The Federal Circuit held that the Biologics Price Competition and Invention Act of 2009 (BPCIA) provides the exclusive remedy for failure to comply with its disclosure requirements...
Online Re-registration of DMCA Agents Required by the United States Copyright Office by December 31, 2017.
December 8, 2017
By: Susan G. L. Glovsky and Samuel J. Sussman
A new registration requirement places companies at risk of copyright suits over material hosted on their websites. The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) "safe...
In re: Micron Technology, Inc.: Uncertainty Remains in Objections to Patent Venue
November 29, 2017
The Supreme Court’s decision in TC Heartland in May, 2017, granted defendants greater control over where patent infringement lawsuits can be filed against them. Left...
The Federal Circuit Confirms a Return to Restrictive Patent Venue Requirements
September 29, 2017
By: John L. DuPré and Samuel J. Sussman
The requirements as to where a patent infringement case can be filed are different from and more restrictive than the venue requirements for a general case Unless the...
U.S. Supreme Court Holds "Disparagement Clause" of Trademark Law Unconstitutional
June 19, 2017
Free speech prevents the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) from denying registration of trademarks considered disparaging Today, in Lee v. Tam, the U.S. Supreme...
Supreme Court Limits Choice of Venue in Patent Cases
May 22, 2017
By: Brian T. Moriarty and Timothy J. Meagher
A corporation only “resides” in its state of incorporation for venue purposes in patent cases. Selling products in a venue is not enough to establish corporate...
Notice Requirements For Federal Trade Secret Protection
March 2017
By: Christine M. Wise and John L. DuPré
Under the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) of 2016, federal trade secret protection is now available. The DTSA, and its notice requirement discussed below, are applicable to any...
Federal Circuit Clarifies Interstate Use-In-Commerce of Trademarks
November 30, 2016
By: John L. DuPré and Patrick A. Quinlan
A long-standing requirement for federal trademark registration under the Lanham Act is use of a product or service bearing the mark in commerce that is regulated by Congress. ...