Posts in Courts
Hatch-Waxman and BPCIA Cases and Trends to Watch in 2021
As we turn the page to 2021, we expect at least two major cases to be resolved that could have long-lasting effects on where and how Hatch-Waxman and …
US Inventor Backs SCOTUS Petition to Clarify Claim Construction Principles
Inventor advocacy group US Inventor has filed an amicus brief in support of a petition to the U.S. Supreme Court asking the justices to clarify “[w]…
Patent Filings Roundup: Fortress Gets Into the 5G SEP Game; Judge Gilstrap Stays Trial for Reexam After Board Denied Under Fintiv; Fintiv Case Transferred
All eyes this week were on the USPTO Director’s chair and the inauguration, and yesterday the USPTO posted a farewell blog and speech, confirming that Andrei …
Western District of Texas Gets an Upgrade: A Look at the New Waco Courtroom
Anyone who is familiar with the fortunes of Waco, Texas over the past few years will recognize the remarkable transformation of the city in most every respect. …
Washington Insiders Say Farewell to 2020 and Look Ahead to 2021
As we thankfully see 2020 fading into the rear-view mirror and all look forward to a hopefully much better 2021, we want to take a moment to reflect on …
Complete Genomics Sues Illumina for Antitrust and Unfair Competition Violations
Complete Genomics, Inc., BGI Americas Corp., and MGI America’s Inc. (Complete Genomics) have filed suit against Illumina, Inc. alleging violation of federal antitrust statutes and California …
Patent Filings Roundup: Board Says ‘Nein’ to German Company’s IPR; A PTAB Footnote to the Fortress/Intel Fight
Per the usual slow January, it was a light week at both the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) and in the district courts. At the PTAB, …
Minaj-Chapman Copyright Settlement is a Warning to Artists
Last week, documents were filed confirming that singer-songwriter Tracy Chapman accepted Onika Tanya Maraj’s (who performs rap under the stage name Nicki Minaj) Rule 68 Offer of …
Drawing Software Patent Drafting Guidance in 2021 from an Unlikely Source: the Federal Circuit
Since the Supreme Court’s Alice decision in 2014, inventors have faced extra hurdles trying to protect their software-related inventions with patents. A chief obstacle has been satisfying …
Skidmore-Mead Can Solve the Patent Eligibility Dilemma
Judge Kimberly Moore, in a comprehensive and insightful opinion dissenting from the denial of the petition for rehearing en banc in Athena Diagnostics, Inc. v. Mayo Collaborative …
Ericsson Wins Anti-Interference Injunction Against Samsung in Texas FRAND Case
Judge Rodney Gilstrap of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas yesterday issued an order enjoining Samsung Electronics from taking any action to …
PTAB Will Use Nautilus Approach to Indefiniteness for Post-Grant Proceedings
Last week, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) issued binding indefiniteness guidance in a memorandum from Director Andrei Iancu that addresses confusion about which indefiniteness …
Supreme Court Will Review Doctrine of Assignor Estoppel
On Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court granted a petition for certiorari filed by Minerva Surgical, Inc. asking the Court to clarify questions around the doctrine of …
Federal Circuit Affirms TTAB Dismissal of QuikTrip’s Opposition to Convenience Store Mark
On January 8, the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) affirmed a decision of the United States Patent and Trademark Office, Trademark Trial and …
Alice in 2020: Slashing Software Patents and Searching for Functional Language at the Federal Circuit (Part II)
In Part I of this article, I explained that the CAFC invalidated almost every software patent on appeal for eligibility in 2020 and recapped the first 13 such cases …
