Law Commons^™

When Inventors Go Bankrupt, Joseph Dietz

Cybaris®

No abstract provided.

Return To A One-Year Robust Grace Period In United States Patent Law, Mark Kallevig

Cybaris®

No abstract provided.

Much Dispute About Nothing? A Critical Examination Of The Backlash Against Investment Treaty Arbitration In International Intellectual Property Disputes, Andy Taylor

Cybaris®

No abstract provided.

Legislative Report: Patents For Humanity Act Of 2022, Stephen Kohn

Cybaris®

No abstract provided.

The Trade Secrecy Standard For Patent Prior Art, Sharon Sandeen, Camilla A. Hrdy

Faculty Scholarship

A fundamental criterion of patentability is that an invention must be new as compared to the prior art—the corpus of preexisting knowledge and technology already available to the public. If an invention is in the prior art, or rendered obvious by it, it cannot be patented.

The U.S. Patent Act has traditionally envisioned a categorical approach for deciding what counts as prior art. Under this approach, courts are supposed to decide whether a particular disclosure about the invention (a reference) falls within one of the categories listed in Section 102 of the Patent Act, such as “described in a printed …

A Siri-Ous Societal Issue: Should Autonomous Artificial Intelligence Receive Patent Or Copyright Protection?, Samuel Scholz

Cybaris®

No abstract provided.

Anything You Can Do, Ai Can't Do Better: An Analysis Of Conception As A Requirement For Patent Inventorship And A Rationale For Excluding Ai Inventors, Kaelyn R. Knutson

Cybaris®

No abstract provided.

Can An Improved Disclosure Mechanism Moderate Algorithm-Based Software Patentability In The Public Interest?, Vinicius Sala

Cybaris®

No abstract provided.

Revising Racial Patents In An Era Of Precision Medicine, Jonathan Kahn

Faculty Scholarship

In 2006, I published an article examining the rising use of racial categories in biomedical patents in the aftermath of the successful completion of the Human Genome Project and the production of the first draft of a complete human genome. Ten years on, it now seems time to revisit the issue and consider it in light of the current era of “Precision Medicine” so prominently promoted by President Obama in his 2015 State of the Union address where he announced a $215 million proposal for the Precision Medicine Initiative as “a bold new research effort to revolutionize how we improve …

Make America Innovate Again: Construing Patent Box Proposals In View Of A Policy Mix Approach, Adam E. Szymanski

Cybaris®

No abstract provided.

Korea's Patent Policy And Its Impact On Economic Development: A Model For Emerging Countries?, Jay Erstling

Faculty Scholarship

The purpose of this paper will be to examine Korean patent policy as exemplified by its patent legislation and the activities of Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO). Part II will take a brief look at the rationale underpinning Korea's confidence in the power of the patent system to stimulate economic growth. Part III of the paper will look at the Korean Patent Act as an example of strong, comprehensive patent legislation that fully complies with international standards and responds well to the perceived needs of patent applicants. In order to provide a basis of comparison, reference will be made wherever …

Using Patents To Protect Traditional Knowledge, Jay Erstling

Faculty Scholarship

The role that intellectual property can play in the protection of traditional knowledge (TK) has been on the international agenda for more than ten years, with little to show for it. For example, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) has provided a forum for international policy debate on the subject since 1998, and the WIPO Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore (IGC) has held meetings on draft provisions for the protection of TK against misappropriation and misuse since 2001. Similarly, since 1999 the World Trade Organization (WTO) has been examining the most effective means …

Race-Ing Patents/Patenting Race: An Emerging Political Geography Of Intellectual Property In Biotechnology, Jonathan Kahn

Faculty Scholarship

This article applies insights from critical race theory to examine an emerging phenomenon in biotechnology research and product development. The strategic use of race as a genetic category to obtain patent protection and drug approval. A dramatic rise in the use of race in biotechnology patents indicates that researchers and affiliated commercial enterprises are coming to see social categories of race as presenting opportunities for gaining, extending, or protecting monopoly market protection for an array of biotechnological products and services. Racialized patents are also providing the basis for similarly race-based clinical trial designs, drug development, capital raising and marketing strategies …

The Patent Cooperation Treaty: At The Center Of The International Patent System, Jay Erstling

Faculty Scholarship

In view of the fact that the PCT is composed of almost 130 countries and that more than 100 national and regional patent offices, as well as WIPO itself, perform PCT functions, it is remarkable that the system operates so smoothly and continues to gain momentum. Perhaps the system’s greatest strength comes from the immense diversity of legal, linguistic, and national cultures that constitute the PCT. While the system has served to harmonize divergent practices, it has also been obliged to accommodate to the sometimes inflexible peculiarities of national law and procedure. The PCT’s ability to strike a balance between …

Commentary: Authority Of The Commissioner Over The Board Of Patent Appeals And Interferences, R. Carl Moy

Faculty Scholarship

On August 3, 1992, the United States Patent and Trademark Office published a notice in the Federal Register requesting public comments on the PTO's appeal procedures. Taken in context, then, the notice can be fairly said to raise the issue whether, under the existing statute, the Board is subservient to the Commissioner. It also raises the broader question of whether such a subservient arrangement is desirable or, alternatively, whether the statute should be modified if necessary to give the Board decisional independence from the Commissioner. This Commentary is directed primarily to this latter point. In summary, it concludes that the …

The History Of The Patent Harmonization Treaty: Economic Self-Interest As An Influence, R. Carl Moy

Faculty Scholarship

How shall the United States decide whether to adopt the Patent Harmonization Treaty? What questions shall we ask? Whose answers shall we trust? What sources of information can provide us with the background needed for these inquiries? This article offers a framework in which to ask, and begin to answer, these questions. It focuses on the international community's past efforts to harmonize the law of patents. It asserts not only that history provides context, but also, that the same history yields lessons directly applicable to many of the treaty's basic issues. Section I discusses the immediate history of WIPO's efforts …

The Effect Of New Rule 56 On The Law Of Inequitable Conduct, R. Carl Moy

Faculty Scholarship

This article discusses Rule 56 of the Patent and Trademark Office. Part II discusses changes from the old to the new Rule 56, and examines the former’s relationship to the law of inequitable conduct. Part III elaborates on the current status of the PTO’s rulemaking efforts, and Part IV is focused on the new Rule under the APA. Parts V and VI are about new Rule 56 as a hortatory statement and common-law jurisprudential limitations, respectively. The author ultimately concludes that the PTO could have chosen to approach the Federal Circuit as an amicus without a prior rulemaking proceeding. That …

The Interpretation Of Means Expressions During Prosecution, R. Carl Moy

Faculty Scholarship

This article briefly explains how the scope of a claim including a means expression is determined both under the PTO view and a strict application of the statutory language. The lack of consensus and current state of the law in the area are illustrated through an analysis of several recent decisions of the Federal Circuit. The policies underlying the PTO and statutory methods of interpreting means expressions during prosecution are examined in an effort to demonstrate that the statutory method more effectively furthers the policies underlying the patent system.