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Articles 31 - 36 of 36

Full-Text Articles in Law

A Theory Of Claim Interpretation, Craig Allen Nard Jan 2000

A Theory Of Claim Interpretation, Craig Allen Nard

Faculty Publications

This article explores the proper scope of judicial power in patent law by focusing on the Federal Circuit's theories of claim interpretation. A study of the court's claim interpretation jurisprudence reveals two schools of interpretation. I characterize these approaches as (1) hypertextualism, which is the predominant interpretative theory; and (2) pragmatic textualism, which is gradually asserting itself. The hypertextualist judge has an expansive view of judicial power, characterizing claim interpretation as a question of law subject to de novo review. This highly formalistic approach stresses textual fidelity and internal textual coherence, but eschews extrinsic evidence as an interpretive tool, portraying …


Certainty, Fence Building, And The Useful Arts, Craig Allen Nard Jan 1999

Certainty, Fence Building, And The Useful Arts, Craig Allen Nard

Faculty Publications

In "Certainty, Fence Building, and the Useful Arts," 74 Ind. L.J. 759-800 (1999), the author, based upon contract theory, economic theory, and an empirical survey of federal district court judges, proposes that the United States adopt a patent opposition proceeding. Whereas United States trademark law allows for the publication of and third-party opposition to the issuance of a federal trademark, American patent law, unlike European and Asian patent systems, allows for no such proceeding regarding the patentability of a claimed invention before issuance.


Response To David Nimmer, ‘Copyright In The Dead Sea Scrolls: Authorship And Originality’, Martha Woodmansee Jan 1997

Response To David Nimmer, ‘Copyright In The Dead Sea Scrolls: Authorship And Originality’, Martha Woodmansee

Faculty Publications

Response to David Nimmer's article "Authorship and Originality."


On The Author Effect: Recovering Collectivity, Martha Woodmansee Jan 1997

On The Author Effect: Recovering Collectivity, Martha Woodmansee

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.


Legitimacy And The Useful Arts, Craig Allen Nard Jan 1997

Legitimacy And The Useful Arts, Craig Allen Nard

Faculty Publications

The fundamental question this Article addresses is who should be primarily responsible for making patent validity determinations: the courts5 or the Patent and Trademark Office (“PTO”)?6 Which entity *517 would best serve the constitutional goal of promoting the progress of the useful arts?


Deference, Defiance, And Useful Arts, Craig Allen Nard Jan 1995

Deference, Defiance, And Useful Arts, Craig Allen Nard

Faculty Publications

My objective in this Article is to demonstrate that the PTO's patentability determinations are questions of policy and, therefore, the Federal Circuit's standards of review, as applied to these determinations, are unsound. With respect to the Commissioner's statutory interpretations, I intend to demonstrate that the court's “traditional factors of statutory construction,” which are used in such a way as to avoid deferring to the PTO, result in irrational decisions, or at the very least, an alternative theory of interpretation no more convincing than that put forth by the PTO. My principle assertion, grounded in both doctrine and policy, is that …