Don Scaltrito

The test for design patent claim obviousness changed. The en banc Fed. Cir. struck down the existing test and adopted a more "flexible" approach to conform to KSR. Now, obtaining a design patent will be more difficult, and invalidating an existing design claim will be easier. The Supreme Court has been happy to set the Fed. Cir. straight in recent history. I expect a petition for Cert. Will it be granted? "We conclude that the Rosen-Durling test requirements—that (1) the primary reference be “basically the same” as the challenged design claim; and (2) any secondary references be “so related” to the primary reference that features in one would suggest application of those features to the other—are improperly rigid. The statutory rubric along with Supreme Court precedent including Whitman Saddle, Graham, and KSR, all suggest a more flexible approach than the Rosen-Durling test when determining obviousness." Any analogous art can now be applied under the now standard KSR/Graham test. https://lnkd.in/ePs47bZD #patents #designs

Lowenstein Sandler has been recognized in Patent Bots®'s fifth annual Patent Quality Rankings, securing the eighth spot in quality and fifth in activity among large law firms. This achievement underscores our commitment to excellence in protecting and advancing technological innovations. https://bit.ly/49FeMmB #patentlaw #lawfirms #intellectualproperty #uspto #patents

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The USPTO has issued a notice of potential exposure of protected patent application information through Patent Center. According to the USPTO: "On August 1, 2024, a stakeholder notified the USPTO that a limited amount of protected information within Patent Center was potentially accessible to the public, through certain search functions on the Assignments page. That same day, the assignments functionality within Patent Center was disabled to prevent any further potential exposure." The USPTO further notes the following: "Any improper access of the application information between the dates of December 2, 2017, and August 1, 2024, is not considered a publication of such applications under 35 U.S.C. 122(b). No rights in U.S. patents are threatened by this limited access to unpublished patent application information. While it is unlikely that the title could disclose the invention in a way that would constitute patent-defeating prior art in any jurisdiction, to the extent any issue is raised, the USPTO will assist applicants by confirming that the disclosure was erroneous and inadvertent." For additional information from the USPTO on this, please visit the following USPTO link - https://lnkd.in/eqnj2_6J

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What do antitrust laws mean for your broken phone screen? Proskauer's David Munkittrick, Erica Jones and Logan White Levy explore the FTC’s stance on copyright, competition and the right to repair, and what it might mean for companies and consumers in a recent Law360 article. Read more at: https://bit.ly/45ZMEu7 #Proskauer #Antitrust #AntitrustTechnology #Copyright

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Important Update from the USPTO: The USPTO informed applicants today of another potential exposure of protected patent application information (caused by a computer configuration error) affecting unpublished applications with recorded assignments from December 2, 2017, to August 1, 2024. The exposed information included: -Title of the application -Application number -Application owner name -Application filing date -Inventor and joint inventors' names Key Points: (1) Only one instance of unauthorized viewing has been reported, and the impact on applicants is considered minimal by the USPTO. (2) Specifications, including claims and drawings, were not exposed. (3) The USPTO has taken corrective actions and disabled the affected functionality to prevent further exposure. ACTION FOR PATENT COUNSEL: Review any potentially impacted applications within your portfolio.

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With the overturning of the Chevron doctrine, FDA will face more litigation. But will those challenges succeed? Attorney Stuart Gerson discusses the volume of cases and the related uncertainty, in an article by Susan Kelly and Elise Reuter for MedTech Dive. #FDA #HealthCare #Pharmaceuticals

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Patents in the news! More guidance on AI subject matter from USPTO - but more to come!

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Writing in the spring edition of the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA) Chemical Practice Committee newsletter, for which she serves as Co-Editor, Sommer Zimmerman examined the ongoing implications of the In re Cellect decision. The Cellect case concerned evaluating unpatentability for obviousness-type double patenting of a patent that has received patent term adjustment. Read her full article here: https://bit.ly/3UVGKq5 #BallardIP #Patents #PatentLitigation

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💡 The USPTO Director vacated a Patent Trial and Appeal Board decision denying institution of inter partes review for not addressing alleged differences between references in the petition and those considered during prosecution. The Director determined that the board did not sufficiently explain its findings and remanded for further proceedings. Learn more: https://bit.ly/3UJdMdb By: Ryan Dowell, Caitlin Olwell and Rubén H. Muñoz #IntellectualProperty #PatentLitigation #PatentLaw

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