News & Resources

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.

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.

Posted on May 27, 2015 in Blog

On May 26, 2015, the Supreme Court of the United States, in Commil USA, LLC v CISCO Systems, Inc. in a 6-2 split decision, held that an alleged infringer’s good-faith belief that the patent-in-suit is invalid is not a defense to a claim of induced patent infringement. Justice Kennedy wrote the majority opinion. Justice Scalia and Chief Justice Roberts dissented. Justice Breyer did not take part in the decision.

Posted on May 27, 2015 in Articles

And so continues the latest controversy over the name of a professional sports team. Last year, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) canceled the Washington Redskins’ trademark registration, citing the federal trademark statute that prohibits the registration of trademarks that are disparaging.

Posted on May 11, 2015 in News

The Federal Circuit recently found a software patent to be invalid because of lack of disclosure of several computer algorithms (Eon v. AT&T Mobility). Larry Ashery, a partner with Caesar Rivise, was quoted in an article published by Law360 (on May 8, 2015) discussing the case.

Posted on May 5, 2015 in Blog

If you own a U.S. patent and would consider selling it, Google has instituted an experimental “Patent Purchase Promotion” from May 8 – May 22, 2015. During this “open period”, patentees can submit a Patent Order Submission Form for each patent (one per patent), which allows the patentee to describe his/her patent , along with the offer price to sell it to Google.

Posted on May 5, 2015 in Events

Caesar Rivise attorneys Joe Murphy and Eric Marzluf will be hosting a booth at the PA BIO Spring Social on May 7, 2015 from 5-7:30 pm at the Crowne Plaza Valley Forge in King of Prussia, PA. Please stop by our booth if you will be attending.

Posted on Apr 24, 2015 in Blog

The April 19, 2015 episode of HBO’s Last Week Tonight featured a critique of the U.S. patent system by host John Oliver. After emphasizing the importance of patents to the funding of companies as evidenced by everyone’s favorite investors, the “sharks” of ABC’s Shark Tank, Oliver proceeded to provide an entertaining, albeit simplistic, overview of the economic harm caused by overly broad and vague patents asserted by non-practicing entities, which are more commonly known as “patent trolls”.

Posted on Apr 22, 2015 in Articles

The Innovation Act is a bill currently before Congress to revamp several statutes relating to patent litigation. Earlier this month, over 150 university presidents received a letter from the Consumer Electronics Association urging those presidents to support the Innovation Act. At issue is a controversial proposal to provide for fee-shifting in patent infringement litigation.

Posted on Mar 25, 2015 in Blog

The Supreme Court on March 24, 2015 decided that rulings of the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office as to likelihood of confusion are binding on District Courts.