Patent Docs

Senate Leadership Unveils Details of Patent Reform Agreement

2010-03-08T23:59:00-06:00

By Donald Zuhn -- On February 25th, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) announced that the Committee had reached a "tentative agreement in principle" regarding patent reform legislation (see "Chairman Leahy Announces 'Tentative Agreement in Principle' on Patent Reform Bill"). Chairman Leahy noted that the Committee would release details regarding the bill "in the coming days" and after consultation with House legislators. Last week, the Chairman fulfilled that pledge by unveiling a Manager's Amendment to the Committee's bill (S. 515). In a press release posted on Chairman Leahy's website, the Senator noted that "[w]ith this agreement, we are closer...

New York Times Provides Soapbox for Data Exclusivity Critics

2010-03-08T23:55:00-06:00

By Kevin E. Noonan -- Policy arguments based solely on outcome rather than process are rarely effective when put into practice. This is because the desired benefits of the outcome blind the policymaker to the question of whether the desired outcome can be achieved without considering the effects (intended or otherwise) by the process. This effect can be seen, for example, in the Federal Trade Commission's crusade to ban "reverse payment"-containing settlements of ANDA litigation. The desired outcome is cheaper drug prices as soon as possible. However, against the "per se" illegal stance of the FTC, several regional Courts of...

USPTO Requests Comments on Office's Paperwork Burden Collection Procedures

2010-03-08T23:50:00-06:00

By Sarah Fendrick -- In order to assess the burden of patent-related paperwork, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has retained ICF International (ICF) to conduct an independent study. As described in a notice in the Federal Regster (75 Fed. Reg. 8649), the overall objectives of the study included: (1) Develop an independent, publicly vetted, objectively based estimate of the total cost of paperwork for patent applicants; (2) Develop recommendations for continued improvement in the accuracy of burden estimates made by the USPTO in the future; and (3) Identify opportunities to reduce applicant burdens. As a result of the study,...

Court Report

2010-03-07T23:28:03-06:00

By Sherri Oslick -- About Court Report: Each week we will report briefly on recently filed biotech and pharma cases. Schering Corp. et al. v. Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. et al. 2:10-cv-01058; filed March 2, 2010 in the District Court of New Jersey • Plaintiffs: Schering Corp.; MSP Singapore Co. LLC • Defendants: Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc.; Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. Infringement of U.S. Patent Nos. RE37,721 ("Hydroxy-Substituted Azetidinone Compounds Useful as Hypocholesterolemic Agents," issued May 28, 2002) and 5,846,966 ("Combinations of Hydroxy-Aubstituted Azetidinone Compounds and HMG CoA Reductase Inhibitors," issued December 8, 1998) following a Paragraph IV certification as...

Patent Profile: Athersys Obtains U.S. and European Patents for Non-Embryonic Multipotent Stem Cells

2010-03-07T23:14:06-06:00

By James DeGiulio -- On February 9th, Athersys, Inc. was issued U.S. Patent No. 7,659,118 covering multipotent adult stem cells (MASC), their isolation and expansion, and related pharmaceutical compositions. In a February 10, 2010 press release, the Cleveland-based company also announced the grant of European patent EP 1 218 489 B1, the counterpart to the '118 patent. Athersys adds these patents to an already robust patent portfolio covering its stem cell technology, which includes fourteen patents and more than 120 global patent applications. Both the '118 and '489 patents cover the company's MultiStem technology, which is an investigational stem cell...

USPTO Releases First Issue of Inventorseye

2010-03-07T22:56:04-06:00

By Sarah Fendrick -- Last month, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office released the first issue of inventorseye. Inventorseye is a bimonthly publication released by the USPTO in an effort to provide the necessary resources for an independent inventor. The electronic publication provides information on events, organizations, and meetings of interest to the independent inventor community as well as issues that pertain to independent and small entity inventors. The first issue of inventorseye includes information on how to avoid scams relating to obtaining protection for an invention, tips on how to get started in the patent protection process, and a...

Conference & CLE Calendar

2010-03-07T22:45:55-06:00

March 9, 2010 - "Patent Infringement Claims, Opinions of Counsel and Attorney-Client Privilege: Best Practices for Opinion Letters after Seagate and Qualcomm" (Technology Transfer Tactics & Strafford) - 1:00 - 2:30 PM (EST) March 17-18, 2010 - 18th Forum on Biotech Patenting (C5) - Munich, Germany March 18-19, 2010 - 4th Summit on Biosimilars and Follow-on Biologics*** (Center for Business Intelligence) - Washington, DC March 22-23, 2010 - 4th Annual Patent Law Institute (Practising Law Institute) - San Francisco, CA March 24-25, 2010 - FDA Boot Camp*** (American Conference Institute) - New York, NY March 30, 2010 - "The Bilski...

12th Comprehensive PCT Seminar

2010-03-05T23:59:00-06:00

The Franklin Pierce Law Center and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) will be holding the 12th Comprehensive PCT Seminar on April 23-24, 2010 in Concord, NH. The two-day seminar will provide participants with in-depth knowledge and understanding of the PCT, and will address the following topics: • Introduction to the PCT system; • Basics of the PCT; • Filing International applications by U.S. applicants; • The International Bureau as a Receiving Office -- by choice or by circumstance; • Signature requirements, agents, common representatives and withdrawals; • Claiming priority and furnishing of priority documents; • International search and written...

WRG Corporate IP Counsel Summit

2010-03-05T23:55:00-06:00

World Research Group (WRG) will be holding its Second Annual Corporate IP Counsel Summit on April 27-28, 2010 in New York, NY. The conference will focus on the latest developments in monetizing and maximizing IP, patent portfolio optimization. Among the presentations to be offered by WRG faculty are: • Keynote Session -- Dennis Crouch, Patently-O; • Enhancing your value as in-house counsel by learning to operate in the new world of open innovation (panel discussion); • Preparing for litigation: Best practices to prepare, assert or defend against a patent assertion which leads to litigation; • Overcoming barriers to patenting "green"...

Qui Tam Actions in Senate Sights

2010-03-04T17:28:00-06:00

Manager's Amendment of S. 515 Would Eliminate Most Suits By Kevin E. Noonan -- Over the past few weeks, close to perhaps one hundred actions, characterized as "qui tam" (or whistleblower) lawsuits have been filed against several large companies (including 3M, Monster Cable Products, S.C. Johnson & Co., Proctor & Gamble Co., and Novartis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.). These actions are based on alleged violation of 35 U.S.C. § 292(b), the "false marking" portion of the patent statute that makes it a violation to intentionally mark an item in commerce with a patent number that has expired or does not protect the...