Patent Docs

USPTO Closed on Monday and Tuesday, February 8-9, 2010

2010-02-09T22:50:50-06:00

By Sarah Fendrick -- On Monday and Tuesday, February 8-9, 2010, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office was closed due to weather. As a result of the closing, the USPTO will consider each of Monday and Tuesday, February 8-9, 2010 to be a "Federal holiday within the District of Columbia" under 35 U.S.C. § 21(b) and 37 C.F.R. §§ 1.6, 1.7, 1.9, 2.2(d), 2.195, and 2.196. Thus, according to a USPTO notice issued earlier today, any action or fee due on either February 8-9, 2010 (or the preceding Saturday (February 6, 2010) or Sunday (February 7, 2010)) will be considered...

Court Report

2010-02-09T22:35:43-06:00

By Sherri Oslick -- A note to our readers: In an effort to catch up with recently filed biotech and pharma cases following a brief hiatus, Patent Docs presents this additional installment of Court Report. Teva Women's Health, Inc. v. Lupin, Ltd. et al. 2:10-cv-00603; filed February 3, 2010 in the District Court of New Jersey • Plaintiff: Teva Women's Health, Inc. • Defendants: Lupin, Ltd.; Lupin Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Infringement of U.S. Patent No. 7,320,969 ("Oral Contraceptives to Prevent Pregnancy and Diminish Premenstrual Symptomatology," issued January 22, 2008) following a Paragraph IV certification as part of Lupin's filing of an...

Patent Profile: Fate Therapeutics to Receive First U.S. Patent for Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Technology

2010-02-09T22:24:53-06:00

By James DeGiulio -- This week, Fate Therapeutics of San Diego, CA was issued a Notice of Allowance for U.S. Application No. 10/997,146 (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2008/0280362), titled "Methods for Reprogramming Somatic Cells." With a priority date of November 26, 2003, the application is believed to contain the earliest allowed claims in the United States for induced pluripotent stem cell technology. Upon issuance, the invention by Rudolf Jaenisch, M.D. (below left), founding member of the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research and scientific founder of Fate Therapeutics, will cover methods for generating pluripotent stem cells and compositions for identifying...

Newsweek = Newspeak on Gene Patenting

2010-02-08T23:59:00-06:00

By Kevin E. Noonan -- Newsweek has always been Avis to Time Magazine's Hertz -- evidenced by an increasing difference in subscriptions (3.3 million versus 1.97 million on 2009). So it isn't surprising that the magazine needs to do something to tweak its readership, even if that something is to distort its reporting on an important issue. Which is, of course, what Newsweek has done on its science news page in the February 15th issue, in an article cleverly entitled "Who Owns Your DNA?" The article, by "Science Editor" Susan Begley (at left), is of course not a science story...

Court Report

2010-02-08T23:52:29-06:00

By Sherri Oslick -- A note to our readers: In an effort to catch up with recently filed biotech and pharma cases following a brief hiatus, Patent Docs presents this additional installment of Court Report. Eli Lilly and Company v. Fresenius Kabi Oncology PLC 1:10-cv-00147; filed February 4, 2010 in the Southern District of Indiana Infringement of U.S. Patent Nos. 4,808,614 ("Difluoro Aantivirals and Intermediate Therefore," issued February 18, 1989) and 5,464,826 ("Method of Treating Tumors in Mammals with 2',2'-difluoronucleosides," issued November 7, 1995) following a Paragraph IV certification as part of Fresenius' filing of an ANDA to manufacture a...

Court Report

2010-02-07T23:59:00-06:00

By Sherri Oslick -- A note to our readers: Patent Docs apologizes to our readers for the recent Court Report hiatus. This Court Reporter was away at trial and has just now been able to come up for air. We will catch our readers up in the next few postings. Patent Docs thanks our readers for their patience. Novartis AG v. Kappos 1:10-cv-00164; filed January 29, 2010 in the District Court of the District of Columbia Review and correction of the patent term adjustment calculation made by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for U.S. Patent No. 7,569,337 ("Coumarins Useful...

USPTO Budget Request for FY 2011 and Perspectives from the Patent Community

2010-02-07T23:46:11-06:00

By Christopher P. Singer -- On February 1, 2010, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued a press release announcing President Obama's $2.3 billion budget request for the USPTO for fiscal year 2011. According to the statement, the amount of the budget request is intended to support and achieve the strategic objectives of the five-year plan for the USPTO as mapped out by Director Kappos and Commerce Secretary Locke. Specific goals include reducing application pendency and the existing application backlog, improving patent quality, enhancing IP protection and enforcement, and upgrading the Office's IT infrastructure and tools in order to achieve...

USPTO Extends Period for Public Comment and Period of Effectiveness for Recent Programs

2010-02-07T23:32:12-06:00

By Sarah Fendrick -- The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has extended the time for public comment for two recent Office initiatives and has extended the period of effectiveness for a third Office initiative. Extension of Period for Comments on Enhancement in the Quality of Patents In December 2009, the USPTO published a notice in the Federal Register seeking public comment on the enhancement in quality of patents. Specifically, the Office solicited public comment with respect to potential methods that may be employed by applicants and the USPTO to enhance the quality of issued patents, to identify appropriate indicia of...

Conference & CLE Calendar

2010-02-07T23:12:51-06:00

February 9, 2010 - Patent Prosecution: Best Practices for Reducing Costs While Improving Patent Quality (Technology Transfer Tactics) - 1:00 - 2:30 PM (EST) February 17-18, 2010 - Biotech & Pharmaceutical Patenting (IIR) - Munich, Germany February 24-25, 2010 - 2nd Expert Forum on ITC Litigation & Enforcement (American Conference Institute) - New York, NY March 1-2, 2010 - 4th Annual Patent Law Institute (Practising Law Institute) - New York, NY March 2-4, 2010 - 6th Annual Biosimilars Conference (Visiongain) - Boston, MA March 17-18, 2010 - 18th Forum on Biotech Patenting (C5) - Munich, Germany March 18-19, 2010 -...

Paragraph IV Disputes Conference

2010-02-05T23:46:19-06:00

American Conference Institute (ACI) will be holding its 4th Annual Paragraph IV Disputes conference on April 27-28, 2010 in New York, NY. The conference will allow attendees to: • Identify patents for small molecules and small proteins that may be ripe for a Paragraph IV challenge; • Recognize an ANDA applicant's initial obligations and reevaluate Orange Book tactics; • Incorporate post-KSR obviousness considerations into Paragraph IV litigation strategies; • Develop a plan of action for Notice Letter delivery and Post-Notice Letter deliberations; • Master techniques for drafting the initial Paragraph IV pleadings; • Understand the criteria for 180-day exclusivity and...