Intellectual Property Law Commons^™

Chief Judge Paul R. Michel's Address To The Federal Circuit Judicial Conference On The State Of The Court, 7 J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 647 (2008), Paul R. Michel

UIC Review of Intellectual Property Law

On May 15, 2008, Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit Paul R. Michel delivered the annual State of the Court speech. Chief Judge Michel delivered this speech during the Federal Circuit Judicial Conference, held at the Grand Hyatt hotel in Washington. The text of that speech and the corresponding graphics appear here.

Protection Of U.S. Trade Secret Assets: Critical Amendments To The Economic Espionage Act Of 1996, 7 J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 656 (2008), R. Mark Halligan

UIC Review of Intellectual Property Law

In order to protect the economic interests of the United States, the Economic Espionage Act was enacted in 1996. Although intended to prevent and deter trade secret theft, the EEA is limited to criminal prosecutions. Critical amendments to the EEA are required to create a civil cause of action in the new information-based economy and the international marketplace. The following proposed amendments to the EEA provide a federal civil cause of action, allowing companies to protect trade secret assets and to ensure the continued growth and protection of trade secret assets in the international marketplace.

Post-Quanta, Post-Sale Patentee Controls, 7 J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 682 (2008), Harold C. Wegner

UIC Review of Intellectual Property Law

In Quanta Computer, Inc. v. LG Electronics, Inc., the Supreme Court recalibrated the balance between the rights of a patentee to contractually control the post-sale transfer and the use of patented goods. Specifically, the Court extended the doctrine of patent exhaustion to cover the exhaustion of patents not recited in the license, as well as the practice of technology that does not infringe any patent, but which can only be used in a manner by customers that would infringe a patent. While Quanta arose out of facts concerning computer technology, the implications of this decision will be widespread, permeating diverse …

Throwing Judge Bryson's Curveball: A Pro Patent View Of Process Claims As Patent-Eligible Subject Matter, 7 J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 701 (2008), Christopher A. Harkins

UIC Review of Intellectual Property Law

Can a baseball pitcher patent a method of throwing a curveball? On May 8, 2008, Judge Bryson posed that hypothetical as a way of stressing a point during the oral argument of In re Bilski, one of the most highly-attended hearings in the twenty-five year history of the Federal Circuit. In the Bilski case, the Federal Circuit will decide whether to embrace a new patentability test that redefines what is patent-eligible subject matter in the United States, or to create a fourth no-no to patent eligibility. At stake are many computer software patents and business method patents that form the …

Honoring Trademarks: The Battle To Preserve Native American Imagery In The National Collegiate Athletic Association, 7 J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 735 (2008), Ian Botnick

UIC Review of Intellectual Property Law

On August 5, 2005, the National Collegiate Athletic Association introduced its plan to end the use of Native American mascots, nicknames and imagery. Schools were required to change their offensive nicknames and mascots and were forced to stop using trademarks bearing Native American imagery. The NCAA ban presents the question of whether schools affected by the ban can bring a trademark action against the NCAA. One interpretation of trademark law provides a school with no redress because the NCAA has not created a competing mark. However, the other interpretation of trademark law provides a school with a valid trademark claim …

Must The Jury Reach A Verdict? The Constitutionality Of Eliminating Juries In Patent Trials By Creating An Article I Tribunal, 7 J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 754 (2008), Daniel P. Sullivan

UIC Review of Intellectual Property Law

The February 2007 jury verdict against Microsoft totaling $1.52 billion marked the largest in a patent case ever, following the prevailing trend of juries awarding extraordinarily high damages. Because patent law deals with complex technology and complicated issues of fact and law, and because empirical evidence concludes that juries have significant biases in favor of patentees and against alleged infringers, this comment calls into question whether or not twelve lay persons are sufficiently equipped to handle patent trials. In lieu of juries rendering verdicts in patent trials – and even in lieu of U.S. District Court judges adjudicating patent trials …

The Uneven Application Of Twombly In Patent Cases: An Argument For Leveling The Playing Field, 8 J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 1 (2008), R. David Donoghue

UIC Review of Intellectual Property Law

The Supreme Court's recent Twombly decision has tightened pleading standards by retiring Conley v. Gibson’s “no set of facts” language. While Twombly has been applied beyond antitrust law, its impact on patent pleadings is not yet settled. Currently, a troubling dichotomy has emerged: lower courts are holding defendants to a heightened pleading standard for affirmative defenses and counterclaims, while allowing plaintiffs to continue the pre-Twombly “bare-bones” pleadings practice. This dichotomy is inconsistent with the Twombly Court’s goal of controlling the ballooning size of and costs of complex civil litigation. Holding patent plaintiffs to a heightened pleading standard would be at …

What The Story Of The Invention Of The Transistor Teaches Us About 21st Century Patent Practice, 8 J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 80 (2008), Lawrence B. Ebert

UIC Review of Intellectual Property Law

In 1947, scientists at Bell Laboratories internally disclosed a remarkable new invention that would later become known as the “transistor.” Following the initial disclosure, Bell Labs methodically planned and facilitated the patenting, publication, and licensing of this new technology. The manner in which Bell Labs handled the disclosure and licensing of this pioneering invention provides a template that present-day inventors would be well-advised to emulate.

Sacking Super Sack: Using Existing Rules To Prevent Patentees From Fleeing An Improvident Patent Infringement Lawsuit, 8 J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 90 (2008), Vangelis Economou

UIC Review of Intellectual Property Law

The Federal Circuit’s Super Sack decision is striking: a patentee’s covenant-not-to-sue for infringement divested the court of subject-matter jurisdiction in deciding the invalidity counterclaim. However, the intent and spirit of the Declaratory Judgment Act and of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(a)(2) suggest that Super Sack may have missed the mark. An in-depth analysis of the Declaratory Judgment Act, Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(a)(2), and post-Super Sack patent cases reveals numerous policy reasons for the Federal Circuit to overturn Super Sack.

The Computer Fraud And Abuse Act: A Vehicle For Litigating Trade Secrets In Federal Court, 8 J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 155 (2008), Graham M. Liccardi

UIC Review of Intellectual Property Law

Federal jurisdictions are split on the reach of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (“CFAA”) in situations where computer-stored trade secrets are stolen by former employees who possessed authorization to access and use the trade secret information. This comment explores both the broad and narrow interpretations of the CFAA. It proposes that courts adopt the broad interpretation, which includes principles of agency law, in order to determine when an employee is “without authorization” under the CFAA. Courts should also adopt the broad interpretation in situations where trade secrets are stolen because an employee is only granted a “limited license” to …

An Immoral Fight: Shielding Moral Rights With First Amendment Jurisprudence When Fair Use Battles With Actual Malice, 8 J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 190 (2008), Mark A. Petrolis

UIC Review of Intellectual Property Law

Moral rights give an artist personal rights to her work. Because an artist puts her personality, spirit, and soul into the creation of her work, her honor and reputation may be harmed if her works are mistreated. In 1990, the Visual Artists Rights Act incorporated moral rights into U.S. copyright law. However, fair use became an absolute defense to moral rights violations. This comment proposes that fair use should not be an absolute defense, and applies First Amendment jurisprudence developed from defamation law to both fair use and moral rights. Defamation shares similarities with both. Like moral rights, defamation law …

The Curse Of "Copying", 7 J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 296 (2008), Kenneth R. Adamo, Ryan B. Mccrum, Susan M. Gerber

UIC Review of Intellectual Property Law

The concept of “copying” has long been involved with various aspects of intellectual property law, particularly in regard to patents and trademarks. In the absence of legally determined exclusive rights, “copying” is permitted, and is in fact, encouraged. However, because the term “copying” carries an undercurrent of disapproval and unfavorable practices, it is a favorite of patentees looking to portray an accused infringer in the most negative light, especially before a jury. Hence, the curse of “copying.” This article will review the current state of “copying” by addressing the substantive precedent in areas where “copying” has traditionally had a substantive …

Feca Matter: An Epic Copyright Infringement Trial, Congressional Interference, And The Diminution Of Moral Rights In The United States Of America, 7 J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 376 (2008), Jacob Armstrong

UIC Review of Intellectual Property Law

Film directors suffered a setback in their collective efforts to maintain the integrity of their films after they are released to the public. In 2005, Congress passed the Family Entertainment Copyright Act, which contained the Family Movie Act, a piece of safe harbor legislation designed to save certain businesses and business practices from ongoing litigation. This Act was not only legislative interference with an ongoing trial, but also served to remove the topic of moral rights from public dialogue. Repealing the Family Movie Act would be a step towards affording directors the ability to prevent misattribution and mutilation of their …

Making A Federal Case For Copyrighting Stage Directions: Einhorn V. Mergatroyd Productions, 7 J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 393 (2008), Jennifer J. Maxwell

UIC Review of Intellectual Property Law

To date, no court has ruled on whether stage directions are copyrightable. Einhorn v. Mergatroyd Productions is the most recent case to directly address the copyrightability of stage directions and blocking scripts. However, the court was unable to decide the copyright issue because both parties to the suit failed to address a series of questions necessary to the resolution of the claim. Nonetheless, the Einhorn decision gives hope to future directors because it highlights the issues crucial to proving a case of copyright infringement of stage directions. This comment advocates for the copyright protection of stage directions that fulfill the …

Noncompliance, Nonenforcement, Nonproblem? Rethinking The Anticommons In Biomedical Research, Rebecca S. Eisenberg

Articles

A decade ago the biomedical research community was sounding alarm bells about the impact of intellectual property (IP) rights on the ability of scientists to do their work. Controversies and delays in negotiating terms of access to patented mice and genes, databases of scientific information, and tangible research materials all pointed toward the same conclusion: that IP claims were undermining traditional sharing norms to the detriment of science. Michael Heller and I highlighted one dimension of this concern: that too many IP rights in "upstream" research results could paradoxically restrict "downstream" research and product development by making it too costly …

Accommodating The Needs Of Iconsumers: Making Sure They Get Their Money’S Worth Of Digital Entertainment, Lucie Guibault

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

The current methods of distributing music and film on the mass-market, either off-line or on-line, raise two types of consumer protection issues. First, consumers are not always in a position to know what they can and cannot do with their digital hardware and content. A lack of proper information and the ensuing failure of the products to meet the consumer’s expectations inevitably leads to discontent. In addition, as weaker party in the transaction, consumers have often no other choice but to accept or refuse the restrictive terms of use, even if these could be regarded as unfair. This paper examines …

Asking For Money Back - Chilling Commercialization Or Recouping Public Trust In The Context Of Stem Cell Research?, Matthew Herder

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

As publicly funded institutions have increasingly embraced the goal of commercializing scientific research, concerns about private appropriation have become familiar refrain. One commonly suggested remedy is to create some kind of 'recoupment' provision whereby the State, on behalf of the public, receives a certain percentage of profits realized. The Bayh-Dole Act originally included a recoupment provision but it was deleted by a legislative committee. Countries around the globe attempting to emulate Bayh-Dole have, whether by design or default, reinforced the underlying logic against recoupment, which is essentially as follows: obligations to provide direct financial returns undermine the commercialization process and …

The Need For Speed (And Grace): Issues In A First-Inventor-To-File World, Margo A. Bagley

Faculty Articles

“One is the loneliest number that you’ll ever do.” This lyric applies to the United States which, since 1998, stands alone among the world’s patent systems in awarding patents to the first person to invent a claimed invention (first to invent, or “FTI”) as opposed to the first inventor to file an application claiming the invention (“FITF”). But its lonely days may soon be over: a provision in pending patent reform legislation will (if passed) move the United States from FTI to FITF and end its solitary stance.

Some argue that the U.S. already has a de facto FITF system, …

Pharma's Nonobvious Problem, Rebecca S. Eisenberg

Articles

This Article considers the effect of the recent decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in KSR International Co. v. Teleflex, Inc. on the nonobviousness standard for patentability as applied to pharmaceutical patents. By calling for an expansive and flexible analysis and disapproving of the use of rigid formulas in evaluating an invention for obviousness, KSR may appear to make it easier for generic competitors to challenge the validity of drug patents. But an examination of the Federal Circuit's nonobviousness jurisprudence in the context of such challenges reveals that the Federal Circuit has been employing all along the sort of flexible …

Bill Graham Archives V. Dorling Kindersley Limited : The Ever-Changing Face Of The Fair Use Defense, Christina Alvarado

SMU Science and Technology Law Review

No abstract provided.

Claims To Information Qua Information And A Structural Theory Of Section 101, Kevin Emerson Collins

Articles by Maurer Faculty

In this article, I start from the premises that claims to inventive information qua information are not and should not be patentable, and I pursue two lines of inquiry. First, I argue that a structural theory of Section l0l of the Patent Act provides a policy-driven, conceptually coherent and statutorily justified interpretation that explains why claims to inventive information qua information should be excluded from the realm of patentable subject matter. In brief, patentable subject matter must be restricted in this manner to preserve the duality of claiming and disclosing upon which the entire patent regime is constructed.

Second, I …

The Specter Of Copyism V. Blockheaded Authors: How User-Generated Content Affects Copyright Policy, Tom W. Bell

Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law

Technological advances, because they have radically lowered the costs of creating and distributing expressive works, have shaken the foundations of copyright policy. Once, those who held copyrights in sound recordings, movies, television shows, magazines, and the like could safely assume that the public would do little more than passively consume. Now, though, the masses have seized (peacefully acquired, really) the means of reproducing copyrighted works, making infringement cheap, easy, and, notwithstanding the law's dictates, widespread. Copyright holders thus understandably fear that their customers have begun to treat expressive works like common property, free for all to use. That, the specter …

Privacy From Photography: Is There A Right Not To Be Photographed Under New York State Law?, Ariella Goldstein

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

The Section 117 Adaptation Defense And Krause V. Titleserv, Inc.: An Analysis Of The Various Circuits' Approaches, Logan Marc

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

A Defense Of Patenting Human Gene Sequences Under U.S. Law: Support For The Patenting Of Isolated And Purified Substances, Lauren M. Nowierski

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Criminal Manifestos And The Media, Arlen Pyenson

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

The Reach Of Literal Claim Scope Into After-Arising Technology: On Thing Construction And The Meaning Of Meaning, Kevin Emerson Collins

Articles by Maurer Faculty

Broadly speaking, courts and commentators have offered two theories to explain the relationship between the literal scope of a patent claim and after-arising technology (AAT), i.e. technology that is not discovered until after a claim has been filed. The fixation theory asserts that claim scope is and/or should be fixed on the date a claim is filed and that this fixation makes it impossible for the claim to encompass AA T because a claim must grow in some sense after the filing date in order to encompass AA T. In stark contrast, the growth theory argues that literal claim scope …

Rationalising The Regime Of Compulsory Patent Licensing By The Essential Facilities Doctrine, Kung-Chung Liu

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

Where intellectual property rights (IP) owned by dominant undertakings are indispensable and impossible for other market players to replicate or acquire, the refusal to grant license to use such IP may cause serious harm to vital public interests, such as the supply of life-saving drugs, of technology that protects the environment, the compliance with de jure or de facto industry standards and the preservation of competition in markets with network effects or strong need for compatibility and interoperability

Operation Restoration: How Can Patent Holders Protect Themselves From Medimmune?, Stephanie Chu

Duke Law & Technology Review

The Supreme Court’s recent decision in MedImmune v. Genentech shifts the balance of power in license agreements from patent holders to their licensees. This iBrief outlines the potential implications of the new rules on all stages of patent prosecution and protection. Further, it evaluates remedial contract provisions patent holders may include in future license agreements and how these provisions may mitigate the decision’s effects on preexisting commercial relationships.

Encouraging Corporate Innovation For Our Homeland During The Best Of Times For The Worst Of Times: Extending Safety Act Protections To Natural Disasters’, Ava A. Harter

Duke Law & Technology Review

This article first analyzes the innovative tort reform of the SAFETY Act and then argues for expansion of SAFETY Act type risk protection to natural disasters such as hurricanes, earthquakes and wildfires. The SAFETY Act was drafted to stimulate the development and deployment of technologies that combat terrorism by providing liability protection. Applying the same type of legislation to natural disasters will provide a commensurate benefit of encouraging preparedness and development of technologies that could mitigate harms resulting from natural disasters. The Department of Homeland Security voiced a desire to increase the use of the SAFETY Act by private industry. …