In recent legal update, the Federal Circuit has directed the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) to reevaluate a ruling related to Medtronic Inc.’s patents. This follows into the limelight, Axonics Inc.’s revived challenge against a pair of patents which Medtronic Inc. holds, surrounding its InterStim sacral stimulation system. This technological system is primarily used…
In the complex realm of patent law, the case of United Therapeutics Corporation v. Liquidia Technologies, Inc. offers some critical insights. This case, an appeal and cross-appeal originating from a District of Delaware decision, touches on several key issues relating to patent infringement and validity. The case centers around the status of several different claims…
Recent developments in Congress could potentially reshape the patent litigation landscape, with two bills recently introduced seeking to reform patent eligibility and change procedures for litigating patent invalidity. These developments may require legal professionals involved in patent litigation to recalibrate strategies and anticipate the potential implications of such legislative changes on infringement litigation. The first…
In a recent case, United Therapeutics Corporation v. Liquidia Technologies, Inc., there was a discussion by the Federal Circuit on July 24 concerning the necessity for safety and efficacy within pharmaceutical method claims to be sufficiently enabled and backed by written description. This case was sparked when Liquidia Technologies filed a new Drug Application for…
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has initiated a lawsuit against Pfizer in an attempt to put a halt to their Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) vaccine for adults. GSK asserts that Pfizer’s vaccine, known as Abrysvo, infringes on four of their patents. The news of this lawsuit comes as we approach the RSV season, which usually kicks off in…
In a recent development, the director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has overturned a Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) decision that declined to re-evaluate a biotech firm’s patent pertaining to a hormonal disorder treatment. The reversal came on Friday, and it was a significant move by Andrei Iancu, the USPTO Director….
In a recent development, a Texas federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit aimed at PGA Tour Inc. The suit had accused the entity of infringing upon patents permitting spectators to monitor the real-time performance of individual golf players as they manoeuvre around the course during a tournament. The case, initially filed in West Texas, confronted…
The director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has imposed penalties on a company challenging a key VLSI microchip patent, securing Intel a $2.2 billion jury verdict. The company under question is Patent Quality Assurance, which was brought before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. This punitive action has been taken due to what’s…
In a relevant recent development, the PTAB (Patent Trial and Appeal Board) granted the institution of an Inter Partes Review (IPR) in light of several parallel district court proceedings regarding the same patent. The Board was not persuaded by the Patent Owner’s argument that the petitioner’s “conflicting” stances regarding claim construction within the district court…
In the 2023 mid-year review, the key developments in trade secret legislation have been highlighted by Smith Anderson in their white paper, surfacing crucial shifts in intellectual property law we should all be aware of. As stipulated, a trade secret is any piece of information used in a business operation that holds independent economic value…
Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools, ranging from text and image generators to music and software code marvelling utilities, have seen a significant proliferation recently. However, their integration with Intellectual Property (IP) has been the subject of intense discussion in legal circles. One of the key focal points of these debates circles around whether works of art…
The previous week’s litigation in London was marked by a flurry of legal activity. Law firm Hugh James instigated legal actions against Berrymans Lace Mawer LLP due to the guidance it provided to a medical group involved in a case over non-medical-grade silicone implants[1]. In more international news, Panasonic has lodged a patent claim against…
In a recent development in the world of patent litigation, camera manufacturer GoPro Inc. managed to quash the effort for a retrial over a high-stakes patent infringement lawsuit. The dispute was raised by an inventor who insisted that he was the first to initiate the concept of taking 360-degree photographs. The lawsuit, presided over by…
In February, the Federal Circuit made a decision to not alter or overrule its tried-and-true test for assessing the obviousness in design patents, popularly known as the Rosen-Durling test. This decision was made despite the contention that the Supreme Court had previously overruled it in KSR v. Teleflex. This has been a subject of ongoing…
Adding to the ever-growing list of Intellectual Property disputes, a recent judgement by a California federal judge has imposed a penalty of $2.2 million on a Chinese company engaged in the trade of shopping carts via Amazon and Walmart. The company stands not only accused but also found guilty of patent violation, and the severity…
The United States Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has revived a lawsuit under the False Claims Act (FCA), that accuses Valeant Pharmaceuticals of fraudulently acquiring a patent to prolong the monopoly over its drug Apriso. The suit had initially been dismissed because of the rule known as the ‘public disclosure bar’ – a federal rule…
In a recent patent lawsuit involving technology giant Apple and its South Korean competitor Samsung, Western District of Texas Judge Alan Albright demonstrated a contrasting decision in the courtroom. Significant to the legal professionals and corporations worldwide, this occurrence casts useful insights into the current justice system’s decision-making process with respect to patent suits. Apple…
Lordstown Motors, the bankrupt electric automaker, revealed to a Delaware judge that it had received expressions of interest from 13 potential bidders as part of its Chapter 11 sale process. Despite a forthcoming trial over trade secret claims, which has undoubtedly caused estrangement amongst some potential suitors, the judge approved the majority of Lordstown’s proposed…
Apple Inc. recently approached the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board with a plea to revise its attempt to register the “Apple Music” mark. This followed a loss suffered by the technology giant at the Federal Circuit. Notably, the request includes the removal of a section concerning live performances. The particular case at the Federal Circuit…
Welcome, esteemed legal professionals, to the 20th issue review of the so-called ‘Blockbuster Biologics’. As per usual, we take a deep dive into the most recent happenings in the world of biologics and biosimilars, with a particular focus on patent litigation and post-grant challenges. In the wake of the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act…
The patent infringement case against biotechnology firm Pacific Biosciences of California Inc. has been moved from a Delaware federal court to California. According to the judgement, there were insufficient reasons to support maintaining the case proceedings in Delaware. Pacific Biosciences of California Inc., commonly known as PacBio, is a biotechnology company that’s profusely involved in…
The recent ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in the case of HIP v. Hormel has laid down substantial insights into the domain of joint inventorship. In its decision, the court found that David Howard of HIP was not considered as a joint inventor of a Hormel patent. This case…
In the continually evolving arena of patent law, the third week of July 2023 has seen pivotal advancement in patent cases adjudicated by the Federal Circuit. One such central case involved the United Therapeutics Corp. and Liquidia Technologies, Inc. (Nos. 2022-2217, 2023-1021, Fed. Cir. (D. Del.) July 24, 2023). The case merits attention due to…
In a significant legal development, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has affirmed a district court’s ruling that safety and efficacy do not influence the validity of a method of treatment patent. As reported by law firm McDermott Will & Emery, this judgment took place in the dispute between United Therapeutics Corporation…
The Federal Circuit recently overturned a Patent Trial and Appeal Board (“Board”) decision, which had declared certain claims of Sanofi-Aventis’ ‘614 patent as evidently unpatentable. This significant move indicates the ongoing dynamism and challenges surrounding legal decision-making in the world of intellectual property. [Read more here.] The patent under examination was owned by Sanofi-Aventis Deutschlan…