Patent Baristas

Pure software patents have become the focus of a heated innovation policy debate. On the one hand, new technological innovation is now a commonplace feature of our lives.  On the other hand, the high-tech industry seems awash in patent litigation, especially in the “smart phone war” between Apple, Samsung, Google, Microsoft, and other high-tech firms. […]

Conference on the Life Cycle of Orphan Drug Development & Commercialization Conducting Effective Orphan Drug Research and Clinical Trials to Expedite Orphan Drug Approval When:    January 16-18, 2013 Where:   Boston, MA Key Topics Improve current rare disease research methods used in early stages of orphan drug development with Genzyme Evaluate where the rare […]

A special treat this week is a great podcast by Professor Richard A. Epstein, in which he offers his usual brilliant and insightful commentary on the patent system. As is to be expected, Richard packs about 3 hours of intellectual content into a 1-hour event. To listen, please right click on the audio file you wish to […]

The U.S. Commerce Department’s United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and the European Patent Office (EPO)  announced publication of a classification system meant to speed the patent granting process for applicants to both Offices. The Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) system and finalized CPC definitions are now available in advance of the January 1, 2013, […]

Nobody ever goes home and says, honey, let me tell you about what I learned about patents today.” ~Charles Duhigg, New York Times reporter Terry Gross of NPR’s Fresh Air program did a segment about patents today with an interview with Charles Duhigg, a New York Times reporter who recently wrote about the patent wars […]

What: “Effective and Practical Strategies for Prosecuting and Litigating Biotech Patents in an Increasingly Uncertain Legal Environment” American Conference Institute’s 14th Advanced Forum on Biotech Patents The ongoing implementation of the America Invents Act and a massive upheaval of subject matter patentability signal that this continues to be a period of intense uncertainty for the biotechnology […]

On September 16, 2011, President Barack Obama signed into law the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act.   This Act is often referred to as the most comprehensive overhaul to our patent system since 1836. Seven provisions of the AIA and USPTO implementing final rules for these provisions go into effect today on September 16, 2012: 1.  Inventor’s […]

With the passage of the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (AIA) last year, which converted the patent system from a ‘first to invent’ to a ‘first inventor to file’ system. The AIA, signed into law in September 2011, indeed brought significant changes in certain areas. But it did not address the calculation of damages in patent […]