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Yearly Archives: 2015

Recycled Ink Cartridges and Issue of Patent Exhaustion

Posted on Sep 23, 2015 in Articles

“The palest ink is better than the best memory,” according to a Chinese proverb. Perhaps, but an important case that is set to go to oral argument next month might decide how much you will pay for that ink from recycled ink cartridges. In Lexmark International v. Impression Products, No. 14-1617 (which is currently being argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit), Lexmark International Inc. seeks to control who can recycle and resell Lexmark ink cartridges. And what is the issue being litigated? Patent exhaustion.

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Initial Interest Confusion in Trademark Case Against Amazon

Posted on Aug 26, 2015 in Articles

Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray and John Belushi are working in a restaurant. Jane Curtin walks in and orders two cheeseburgers. Belushi yells at the cook, “Cheezborger, cheezborger.” Curtin then orders a Coke. Belushi responds, “No Coke. Pepsi.” The scene is one of the classics from “Saturday Night Live,” and it is also how Judge Barry Silverman begins his dissent in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit’s decision, Multi Time Machine v. Amazon.com, 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 11554 (9th Cir. Cal. July 6, 2015).

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Intellectual Property of the Biggest Trade Deal in History

Posted on Jul 22, 2015 in Articles

TPP. TPA. TAA. It’s been a figurative “alphabet soup” of names for international trade legislation that has recently been in the news.

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Caesar Rivise’s Claim Construction Prevails in Markman Decision of NJ District Court

Posted on Jul 17, 2015 in News

In a July 15, 2015 Markman decision, U.S. District Judge Stanley R. Chesler reaffirmed his preliminary claim construction that “size 00 or less” in U.S. Patent No. 8,563,032 means “precisely size 00 or less” capsule, excluding the larger size 00el capsule.

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What Changes After Fed. Circ.’s Williamson Decision

Posted on Jul 10, 2015 in Articles

When the Federal Circuit issued the en banc decision in Williamson v. Citrix [1], the court changed the guidelines regarding the adjudication of patent claims with functional claim language. Many blogs, articles and newsfeeds embraced the decision as yet another positive step towards curbing frivolous litigation based on overly broad software patents. Only time will tell if Williamson accomplishes that goal. The decision, however, is interesting because it refines an important test for interpreting functional claim language, while at the same time it preserves aspects of the precedent.

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U.S. Supreme Court Affirms Rule Precluding Post-Expiration Patent Royalty Payments

Posted on Jun 29, 2015 in Blog

In 1991, Kimble patented a toy glove that enabled a user to shoot a pressurized string from it. Kimble attempted to sell or license the patent to Marvel Entertainment for Marvel’s Spider-Man character. Marvel declined. However, Marvel started to sell a toy which Kimble alleged infringed the patent, so Kimble brought suit for infringement of its patent.

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When ‘No Means’ Means ‘Means’ in Functional Claim Language

Posted on Jun 24, 2015 in Articles

The preferred patent claim strikes a very fine line. When patent claims are broad, with fewer words, it is easier to find that they have been infringed. When claims are too broad, however, they may fail to meet the statutory requirements of patentability, for they may then fail to distinguish over the prior art (i.e., that which was already known before the patent was applied for). One way that patent attorneys draft broad claims, while at the same time differentiating over that which is already in the public realm, is to use something called functional claiming. Simply put, instead of writing a patent claim that describes what something is, a functional claim describes what something does (and hence the function that is performed).

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No Need To Take Revenge Porn Lying Down

Posted on Jun 23, 2015 in Blog

The age of the internet and digital media has created new problems in protecting personal privacy. The viral nature of online intimate and explicit images allows for any individual image to quickly spread across the internet. Once an image has spread across the internet, there are a limited number of ways to stop its further distribution.

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Claims to Detection and Analysis of Fetal DNA in Maternal Plasma Were Found Invalid for Failing to Transform the Subject Matter of the Claims From a Natural Phenomenon Into Patent-Eligible Subject Matter

Posted on Jun 22, 2015 in Blog

In Ariosa Diagnostics, Inc. v Sequenom, Inc. (No. 14-1139 (Fed. Cir. Jun. 12, 2015)) the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (“CAFC”) upheld a decision by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California invalidating a patent covering a ground breaking technique for fetal testing and diagnostics.

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50-Year Anniversary of Manny Pokotilow

Posted on Jun 17, 2015 in News

We’re pleased to announce Manny Pokotilow’s 50th anniversary with the firm. Manny has made numerous contributions to the firm, including serving as its Managing Partner for more than 20 years, from 1990 through 2012. Under his direction and guidance the firm grew and prospered.

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