In an effort to further clarify the application of U.S. Supreme Court precedent on patent obviousness, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has released new but non-binding guidance for its patent examiners. Announced on Monday, these stipulations are intended to assist examiners in determining whether ideas covered by patents might be deemed too “obvious”, in accordance with the Supreme Court’s rulings.
Every patent examiner must assess, among many factors, if a patent application involves an idea that is too apparent or straight-forward, and therefore not patent-eligible. The interpretation of what is deemed “obvious” has significant implications for patent applicants and is typically subject to the legal precedent set by the Supreme Court.
The USPTO’s newly issued guidance seeks to better equip its examiners in the process of assessing this criterion for patent eligibility by referring to the legal framework provided by the Supreme Court.
The agency’s guidance, whilst not legally binding, represents the USPTO’s current stance and offers its examiners a reference point on how to interpret and apply the Supreme Court’s standard in their review of patent applications.
For more context and detail on the USPTO’s new guidance, you can reference the original coverage from Law360 here.