There are two free webinars this week relative to the America Invents Act to alert you to. Given the enormity of the changes and how every time I read the legislation I seem to find something new, you might want to take time to sign up for both. The first will be hosted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office on Monday, October 31, 2011 beginning at 1:00 pm ET. The second, which will focus specifically on how the AIA will impact your business, is provided by K&L Gates and will be on Thursday, November 3, 2011 from 3:00pm to 4:30 pm ET.

USPTO to Host Free Webinar on America Invents Act
October 31, 2011 ~ 1:00 pm ET

The USPTO will host a free public webinar with senior agency officials on Monday, October 31, 2011, beginning at 1:00pm to discuss the America Invents Act (AIA). This legislation was signed into law by President Barack Obama on September 16, 2011, with some provisions becoming immediately effective, while the largest changes do not go into effect until September 16, 2012 and March 16, 2013.

David Kappos, Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO, Teresa Stanek Rea, Deputy Director of the USPTO, Robert L. Stoll, Commissioner for Patents, Bernard Knight, USPTO General Counsel, and James D. Smith, BPAI Chief Administrative Patent Judge, will outline the agency’s implementation plans, and answer a selection of questions submitted during the session. Questions should be submitted in advance to aia_townhallquestions@uspto.gov.

How the Patent Reform Act Will Impact Your Business
Thursday, November 3, 2011 ~ 3:00 pm – 4:30 pm ET

K&L Gates invites you to join them for a complimentary presentation, as well as a question and answer session, pertaining to the America Invents Act.  The AIA includes many changes, large and small, affecting subjects as far-reaching as the available appeals from reexaminations to the subject matter eligibility of tax planning methods and human organisms. In addition to providing those in attendance with a summary of the changes ushered in by this reform to the U.S. patent laws, the focus of this presentation will be on how these changes will impact your business.

Topics Include:

• First-Inventor-to-File
• Changes to What Constitutes Prior Art
• New Post-Grant Administrative Proceedings
• Supplemental Examination
• Defense to Infringement Based on Prior Commercial Use
• Fee Issues
• Subject Matter Carve-Outs for Tax Strategy Patents and Human Organisms
• Marking and False Marking
• Impact on Your Litigation Profile and Risk Management

Also this week…

Applying the First Sale Doctrine: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. v. Kirtsaeng
Tuesday, November 1, 2011 ~ 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm ET

On August 15, 2011, the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in John Wiley & Sons, Inc. v. Kirtsaeng held (2-1) that goods manufactured abroad and imported into the United States without authorization from the copyright owner cannot qualify for the First Sale Doctrine set forth in 17 U.S.C. § 109(a) of the Copyright Act. Judge Cabranes, writing for the majority and joined by Judge Katzmann, found the statutory language in that section “lawfully made under this title” ambiguous, and capable of supporting the position of either party. The majority nevertheless held that the structure of the Copyright Act, coupled with the policies behind the First Sale Doctrine, compelled its conclusion that that doctrine only extended to goods made in this country. The Panel recognized that the Supreme Court in Costco v. Omega had deadlocked 4-4 on this same issue, on December 13, 2010, and further suggested that this was a “close case.” The appellate court nevertheless affirmed the jury verdict against Kirtsaeng for violating the copyright holder’s exclusive importation right under Section 602(a)(1) of the Copyright Act. District Judge Murtha, sitting by designation, dissented, stating that the majority’s interpretation of the statute would potentially allow the copyright owner to exercise perpetual control over copyrighted materials sold in the United States if it simply manufactured those materials abroad and might also encourage copyright owners to move their manufacturing operations overseas in order to gain such control.

This briefing will be presented by Andrew Berger, of the law firm Tannenbaum Helpern Syracuse & Hirschtritt LLP, William Dunnegan, counsel for John Wiley & Sons in the action, and John T. Mitchell, appellate counsel for a defendant in a related action that a group of textbook publishers have commenced.