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Theft and Conversion as the Basis for a Violation of Section 337

For the first time, the U.S. International Trade Commission (“ITC”) has set forth and applied its legal standard for a theft or conversion claim in a Section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930 investigation. Section 337 gives the ITC broad powers to investigate and address unfair acts in the importation of articles into the … Continue Reading

Identifying a Single Biomolecule Means Single-molecule Detection Sensitivity

Every single word matters. Nowhere was this truer than when the Federal Circuit recently held, in an appeal from the Patent Trial and Appeal Board captioned Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. v. Personal Genomics Taiwan, Inc., that an apparatus for identifying a single biomolecule meant examining one biomolecule alone and not inferring its identity from … Continue Reading

The Potential Mushroom Effect of the USPTO’s Mushrooming Patent Application Fees

The United States Patent and Trademark Office’s (USPTO) recently proposed patent fee increases could have far-ranging consequences for applicants looking to build a patent family from a single patent application. In this first of a series of blogs, we will discuss the potential consequences of the USPTO’s proposed fee increases for continuing applications, including continuation, … Continue Reading

A Win for Skinny Labels; Insights for Enforcing Use Patents

Most drugs are covered by multiple patents, with initial patents directed broadly to the compound and later patents directed to increasingly narrower uses of the compound. This provides opportunities for the compound to be approved as a generic drug before expiration of all of the patents, based on a “skinny” label – i.e., a label … Continue Reading

World IP Day 2023: Accelerating Inclusivity of our IP Systems

Every year, on April 26, intellectual property organizations around the world observe “World IP Day” – an event established by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) to raise awareness of patents, copyrights, designs, and trademarks, and to celebrate the creativity and contributions of inventors, authors, artists and entrepreneurs. The theme for 2023 is “Women and … Continue Reading

Trial & Error: Violation of MIL Order Not a Per Se Justification for New Trial

The Federal Circuit’s recent opinion in Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. v Oxford Nanopore Technologies, Inc. et al. reminds us that new trial motions are hard to win, even when the adversary violates a pretrial motion in limine (MIL) order. Rather, the district court judge’s curative instructions and procedures to avoid future violations of a … Continue Reading

USPTO and DOJ Promoting Innovation and Collaboration in Life Sciences

Beginning September 23, a free two-day workshop will address issues relating to innovation by life sciences companies, including IP and antitrust issues arising from collaborations and partnerships. The US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is co-sponsoring the event with the Department of Justice. The program will address the role of patents in the research and … Continue Reading

Federal Circuit Extends Potential Reach of Chemical Compound Structural Similarity Obviousness Law

In Valeant Pharmaceuticals Int’l, Inc. v. Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc., No. 2018-2097 (Fed. Cir. April 8, 2020), the Federal Circuit was asked “whether prior art ranges for solutions of structurally and functionally similar compounds that overlap with a claimed range can establish a prima facie case of obviousness.” Concluding that they can, the Federal Circuit reversed … Continue Reading

Bad Faith Finding Still Required to Ban Patent Infringement Accusations

In Myco Industries, Inc. v. BlephEx, LLC,[1] decided April 3, 2020, the Federal Circuit reversed a district court’s preliminary injunction which forbade a patent owner from accusing others of patent infringement. The Federal Circuit found a lack of a finding of bad faith in the patent owner’s accusations of infringement. The Federal Circuit also found … Continue Reading

February Issue of Bio Pharma Beat Now Available

Our monthly newsletter reports on the patent law developments in biotech, biologics and pharmaceutical cases, legislation and federal agency actions. This month’s issue covers relevant news from January 2020, including: The Federal Circuit holds that post-priority evidence can be used to show inherency in the obviousness context The Federal Circuit explains that enablement of an allegedly anticipatory … Continue Reading
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