By Brent T. Yonehara On June 19, 2017, the U.S. Supreme Court finally, and somewhat as expected, handed down its ruling in Matal v. Tam (formerly Lee v. Tam).[1] By a unanimous vote, the Supreme Court struck down the Lanham Act’s §2(a) prohibition on registration of disparaging trademarks as a violation of the First Amendment’s …
SCOTUS Watch: Cert Granted in Oil States: the Constitutionality of IPR Proceedings
By Brent T. Yonehara On June 12, 2017, the U.S. Supreme Court granted the petition for certiorari in Oil States Energy Services v. Greene’s Energy Group, LLC.[1] Of the three issues presented by petitioner Oil States, only one will be heard before the Supreme Court, namely: Whether inter partes review – an adversarial process used …
SCOTUS Watch: Supreme Court Redefines the Patent Exhaustion Doctrine
By Brent T. Yonehara On May 30, 2017, the U.S. Supreme Court decided Impression Products, Inc. v. Lexmark International, Inc.[1], reversing the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on the scope of the patent exhaustion doctrine, also known as the first sale doctrine, and unequivocably stated in its opinion that “a patentee’s decision to …
Fed Circuit Watch: Helsinn and the On-Sale Bar
By Brent T. Yonehara On May 1, 2017, the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals decided Helsinn Healthcare S.A. v. Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc., 2016-1284, 2016-1787 (Fed. Cir. 2017), holding that the on-sale bar of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. § 102(b) invalidated four patents held by Helsinn, for treatment of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV). The patents …
SCOTUS Watch: TC Heartland LLC v. Kraft Foods Group Brands LLC
By Brent T. Yonehara On May 22, 2017, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down an important ruling, TC Heartland LLC v. Kraft Foods Group Brands LLC, 581 U.S.___ (2017), in patent venue, and specifically limited the ability of patent litigation plaintiffs to file in nearly any U.S. District Court in the country, and held a defendant …
Patent Practitioner Ethics Rule Changes in USPTO
Ethics rules are changing for patent practitioners registered to practice before the USPTO
On-Demand Car Services and Patents: A Review
INTRODUCTION The growth of on-demand car sharing and ridesharing companies has become a phenomenon as a popular form of transportation in high-density urban areas.[1] This is especially true in San Francisco. Each company offers slight variants of the car sharing or ridesharing concepts. In car sharing, a car owner makes is car available for …
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Blurred Lines of Musical Copyright Infringement: The “Blurred Lines” Case
Introduction On March 10, 2015, a federal jury found singers Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams infringed the copyright of Marvin Gaye’s song “Got to Give It Up.”[1] The jury verdict is the first significant copyright infringement ruling involving songwriting and music since 1994.[2] Almost immediately, criticism of the ruling appeared on the Web and social …
Alice in Wonderland: Software Patents in Light of Alice Corp. v. CLS Bank Int’l
By Brent T. Yonehara INTRODUCTION Alice Corporation v. CLS Bank International was recently decided by the U.S. Supreme Court in the closing days of its 2013-2014 term.[1] In Alice, the Supreme Court found that patent claims that do not “transform” from patent-ineligible subject matter to a patent-eligible invention were abstract ideas outside the scope of …