Posts Tagged: "Q. Todd Dickinson"

‘A Life Well Lived’: Remembering Q. Todd Dickinson

In the midst of so much daily sadness around the global pandemic, 2020 dealt us another blow when we learned this week that our friend and giant of the IP world, Q. Todd Dickinson, passed away on May 3, 2020. In response to our In Memoriam article, many of you weighed in with your own personal memories and accounts of Todd, and many more were eager to share their tribute with us separately. His passing also has been noted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), where he served as Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO – the first to hold that title – from 1999 to 2001. Prior to that, Dickinson was appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1998 to be Deputy Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks and became Acting Commissioner after the departure of Commissioner Bruce Lehman, and then Assistant Secretary of Commerce and Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks. Below are compiled the heartfelt recollections we have received thus far about the unmatched career and character of Q. Todd Dickinson. If you would like to add yours, please email us at editors@ipwatchdog.com. 

In Memoriam: Q. Todd Dickinson

It is with tremendous sadness that I write today to say that Q. Todd Dickinson passed away on Sunday, May 3, 2020. As I choke back tears, staring at my computer screen, I find myself at a loss for words to describe someone who has been a friend for so many years, both to Renée and I personally and to IPWatchdog. I mourn not only a great man who, through his many accomplishments, did much domestically and internationally within the intellectual property world, but I also mourn one of my best, truest friends.

Will SCOTUS Solve the Section 101 Problem with Athena? These Patent Experts Hope So

Athena Diagnostics filed its petition for certiorari with the U.S. Supreme Court yesterday in Athena Diagnostics v. Mayo Collaborative Services. There is a strong argument for the Court to grant the petition, and patent stakeholders on all sides are sure to weigh in via amicus briefs over the next month. The petition could represent the best chance for clarifying Section 101 law in the near-term, since patent reform efforts on the topic have been seemingly stalled. Below are a few initial reactions from the patent community to Athena’s arguments.

PTAB Grants Additional Briefing to Consider the Impact of USPTO’s Revised 101 Guidance

The PTAB not only assented to Mirror Imaging’s suggestion that a five-page brief be entered in advance of the hearing but added that parties may submit one brief for each of the four CBM review proceedings which were petitioned by Fidelity… This could be a pivotal moment in the history of the PTAB specifically, and the USPTO more generally. If Director Iancu can achieve the goal of having the Patent Office speak with one voice, with patent examiners and the PTAB all following the same law and guidance, he will have achieved a united Patent Office that has been elusive, but desperately needed.

Photo Diary: Meeting the Threat to America’s Economic Future: US IP & Innovation Policy

On May 9th I attended the International IP Commercialization Council (IIPCC) USA Chapter second annual program at the United States Capitol.  The topic of the event was Meeting the Threat to America’s Economic Future: US IP & Innovation Policy where representatives from IBM, Qualcomm, Personalized Media Communications, the Cleveland Clinic and the University of Michigan, as well as a Who’s Who of IP Leaders and policymakers, shared their real-world perspectives on the state of the US Patent System, and the effects it has and will have on the economy.