Patent Baristas

The Supreme Court issued GVR Orders* on two important biotech cases: Classen Immunotherapies, Inc. v. Biogen IDEC et al. (08-1509) The petition for a writ of certiorari is granted. The judgment is vacated, and the case is remanded to the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit for further consideration in light of […]

MEMORANDUM DATE:            June 28, 2010 TO:                  Patent Examining Corps FROM:           Robert W. Bahr, Acting Associate Commissioner For Patent Examination Policy SUBJECT:     Supreme Court Decision in Bilski v. Kappos Today, the Supreme Court affirmed the USPTO’s decision that the claims in the patent application at issue in Bilski v. Kappos are not patent-eligible under 35 U.S.C. […]

This morning, the Supreme Court issued its long awaited opinion in Bilski v. Kappos, a case which dealt with whether new processes were patentable only if they were performed with a specific machine, or resulted in a physical transformation of some article. In the run up to the decision, many commentators had predicted that the Court […]

The IRS has released guidelines for applying for the new Therapeutic Discovery Tax Credit! The tax credit targets projects that show significant potential to address unmet medical needs, produce new therapies, reduce the long-term increase of the cost of healthcare, and help cure cancer. Additional consideration will be given to projects that show the greatest […]

Duncan Bucknell, over at the IP ThinkTank, discusses FIFA’s response to the women arrested after wearing orange miniskirts bearing the Bavaria beer company logo to a recent match. Duncan posits that FIFA was not on good legal footing but has sold a lot of beer for their sponsor’s competitor. Barbara Castelein and Mirthe Nieuwpoort were […]

It’s a subject that has been debated for a while now, and yet there seems to be no real solution in sight. Why is the cost of healthcare in the USA spiraling out of control and going further out of the reach of the average citizen? Why do people find themselves without insurance all of […]

In Patents for Chemicals, Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology: Fundamentals of Global Law, Practice and Strategy, Philip Grubb and Peter R. Thomsen provide a solid introduction to patent law topics in some of the largest countries, with an emphasis on Europe, Britain, and the USA. Given the importance of global trade and patent protection for products that […]

This is a reminder that some companies and individuals are sending out unsolicited mailings to patent applicants and owners of international patents, designs and trade marks asking them to apply for entry in various (sometimes official sounding) publications, databases and “registers” in return for payment of a fee.  These parties tend to make their offers […]