Previewing CLS Bank v. Alice
Tomorrow, February 8, the full Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (“Federal Circuit”), who receives nearly all patent appeals, will hear oral arguments in CLS Bank v. Alice Corp. This cas...
A History of Abuse
The U.S. patent system is almost as old as our country. The power to create patents was included in the constitution, and the first Patent Act was enacted in 1790. A lot of opponents of patent reform ...
Some Quick Reactions to the PAE Workshop
Market participants, regulators, lawyers, and patent professionals gathered at the FTC yesterday for a very informative Workshop on Patent Assertion Entities (PAEs). We will be posting more this wee...
The SHIELD Act Is a Step in the Right Direction
The SHIELD Act is an important step in the process of common sense patent reform where it is most needed: computer hardware and software patents. The Act introduces a “loser pays” rule in compu...
FTC and DOJ Looking at Trolls under Antitrust Authority
A Sunday article in the Wall Street Journal reports the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Department of Justice (DOJ) are devoting “huge energy, particularly at a senior level” to assess the impa...
Why an Antitrust Lawyer Cares About Patent Reform
Since the advent of antitrust enforcement in the United States through the Sherman Act in 1890, antitrust law and patent law have endured an uneasy relationship. Initial cases treated patents as sup...