The Patent Lawyer

A patent application filed for a formulation or composition typically involves at least one active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) that is combined with various excipients. The excipients are substances that serve as carriers, stabilizers, solubilizers, preservatives,...

CTC Legal Media is thrilled to welcome Elizabeth Jordan as the new Editor-in-Chief of The Trademark Lawyer and The Patent Lawyer magazine. Elizabeth shares her excitement in taking on the new role: “I was previously the editor of Global Railway Review and Building...

A major Government consultation launched today by the UK Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO) aims to modernize Britain's design protection system and strengthen the UK's position as a global design powerhouse.  Industry analysis estimates that the design sector...

Last month, the Supreme Court hearing in the Emotional Perception case took place. Emotional Perception AI Limited (EPL)'s invention was an improved system for providing media file recommendations (such as music) using a trained artificial neural network (ANN), where...

Background This dispute revolves around a patent infringement case, CS (Comm) 655/2023, filed by Kubota Corporation (Kubota) against Godabari Agro Machinery and Services India Private Limited (GAMS) and two Chinese companies that allegedly manufactured the machine and...

On August 5, 2025, in In re: BAC IP B.V., No. 24-2124, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) affirmed the rejection of broad genus claims for lack of written description under 35 U.S.C. § 112, first paragraph. The opinion underscores that satisfying the...

F. Hoffmann-La Roche AG (Roche), the Plaintiff, has brought a patent infringement suit against Zydus Lifesciences (Zydus), the Defendant. Roche seeks relief from the permanent injunction restraining infringement of the following two Indian patents: Product...

Smart appliances are household devices like refrigerators, ovens, washers, dryers, and air conditioners, equipped with technology that allows them to be controlled remotely, often through a smartphone app or voice commands. These appliances offer features like remote...

In the much-anticipated appeal of Sonos v. Google, oral arguments recently unfolded before the Federal Circuit, involving the doctrine of prosecution laches. The district court decision surprised many, as it marked the first time prosecution laches had been used to...

The March 26, 2025, memo from the US Patent and Trademark Office director significantly changed the way the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) handles institution decisions by establishing a bifurcated process under which the acting director—rather than panels of...

This article covers an Appeal, C.A. (COMM.IPD-PAT) 60/2024, filed by Dong Yang PC, Inc. a Korean company against the decision of Controller of Patents and Designs (Controller) whereby it rejected Dong Yang PC, Inc. (Appellant) Patent Application No. 2554/DEL/2013...

In the suit DOLBY INTERNATIONAL AB & ANR. v. LAVA INTERNATIONAL LIMITED (CS(COMM) 350/2024 with I.As.) before the Delhi High Court, the Plaintiff is a patent holder for a representative group of Standard Essential Patents (SEPs), including three active patents...

Patent lawyers watching the Apple v. Masimo case unfold at the Federal Circuit are seeing a live example of key issues in US patent enforcement. These include the scope of ITC exclusion orders, the role of product design in infringement analysis, and the growing trend...

The UK Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO) has today launched a consultation on potential measures to address challenges in the UK's Standard Essential Patents (SEPs) ecosystem. A patent that protects technology that is essential to implementing a technical standard...

If predicting the future were easy, most readers of The Patent Lawyer would be using their powers to buy lottery tickets, not keeping abreast of global patent law updates. Predicting the future, however, is precisely the task attorneys are faced with when drafting a...

As software systems become central to business innovation, trade secret law is crucial for protecting them. The need to protect software and algorithms presents unique challenges for businesses that have long relied on patent protection. The nature of software often...

This article discusses an appeal filed by Kroll Information Assurance, LLC (Appellant), against the order of the Controller General of Patents, Designs, and Trademarks (CG). The appeal concerns the refusal of an Indian Patent Application No. 8100/DELNP/2007 for a...

In a significant setback for global tech giant Samsung, a Texas federal jury has handed down a USD 111.7 million verdict in favor of Maxell, ruling that Samsung infringed three patents covering user interface technology, multimedia processing, and smart networking....

The Federal Circuit's June 16, 2025, decision in Optis Cellular Technology, LLC v. Apple Inc., 2025 US App. LEXIS 14745 shines a renewed spotlight on a recurring challenge in patent law: functional claiming. Specifically, it reaffirms the court's willingness to apply...

This article discusses an appeal filed by AbbVie Biotherapeutics Inc. and AbbVie Inc. (Appellants) at the Delhi High Court against the refusal of their patent application (Application No. 201817047767) for an anti-cMet antibody-drug conjugate by the Assistant...

In a landmark test of the new Unified Patent Court (UPC), the European patent landscape faces a striking divergence between the UPC and the European Patent Office (EPO) on the issue of inventive step. The dispute centers on Amgen's European patent EP 3 666 797, which...

In an appeal case between Zeria Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., v. The Controller of Patents (C.A.(COMM.IPD-PAT) 452/2022) before the Delhi High Court, wherein the appellant - a Japanese Corporation - filed an Indian Patent Application, numbered 3630/DLNP/2011 (the subject...

A recent High Court judgment in India highlights a potential procedural fairness question in patent examination regarding English translation standards. While patent applicants face rigorous translation requirements under multiple Patent Rules, with severe...

The Düsseldorf Local Division of the Unified Patent Court (UPC) has handed down a key decision in UPC CFI 505/2024, affirming the validity of a second medical use patent owned by Regeneron and licensed to Sanofi. The case involved alleged infringement by Amgen’s PCSK9...

The Annual Report 2024 of the Boards of Appeal of the European Patent Office has been published today. It is available in English, German, and French on the Boards' website. Delivering decisions of the highest quality continued to be a central priority in 2024. As in...

No legislative changes mean businesses can continue operating under the existing exhaustion of intellectual property rights regime without any new requirements.  The UK+ regime protects creators and innovators while ensuring fair competition in the marketplace and...

In Crystal Crop Protection Ltd. v. Safex Chemicals India Ltd. & Ors., CS(COMM) 196/2024, Neutral Citation: 2025:DHC:3382, decided on May 7, 2025 by Hon’ble Mr Justice Amit Bansal of the Delhi High Court, the court refused to grant an interim injunction, holding...

Appeal to be heard at the High Court in July 2025 could have major commercial ramifications for patents created with AI assistance or wholly by AI models. London - May 8, 2025 – Potter Clarkson, a leading intellectual property law firm, has been appointed by US-based...

The Young Inventors Prize recognizes innovators under 30 who are tackling Global Challenges through groundbreaking science and technology. 10 exceptional innovators, chosen by an independent jury from over 450 talented candidates, are redefining sustainability,...

The recent legal action by Manchester-based Nanoco Group against electronics giant LG may seem, on the surface, like just another tech dispute. Scratch beneath that, and it highlights much broader issues – particularly for smaller, IP-rich businesses navigating global...

The largest patent non-aggression community in history and the forerunner to many of the defensive patent management organizations today, Open Invention Network (OIN) is celebrating its 20th birthday. Since its founding in 2005, OIN has expanded the scope of its...

As World Intellectual Property Day approaches on 26 April, 2025, we asked our Editorial Board for their thoughts on this year’s focus: ‘IP and music: feel the beat of IP.’ Providing unique insight from their respective jurisdictions, our Editorial Board members...

Jack Dorsey tweeted, “Delete all IP law” on April 12, 2025. It is a strange position to take, considering the co-founder of Twitter has a current estimated stake of $1 billion in X Corp. and owns Block, Inc. (formerly Square). X, formerly Twitter, currently has over...

Generative AI burst into public consciousness at the end of 2022, and by January 2023, ChatGPT—one of the most popular large language models—amassed over 100 million users, becoming the fastest-growing app ever. Since then, much of the focus for intellectual property...

AI governance Artificial intelligence (AI) is at the core of the European Union Intellectual Property Office's (EUIPO) vision. Its approach to AI is human-centric, rooted in the needs and priorities of the staff, ensuring that AI serves as a helpful tool to support...

In January, the UK government set out its response to the AI Opportunities Action Plan that was developed by tech entrepreneur and Chair of Advanced Research and Invention Agency (ARIA) Matt Clifford CBE. The plan set out recommendations for the government, which...

F. Hoffmann-La Roche AG (Roche) brought a Patent infringement case at the Delhi High Court against Natco Pharma Limited (Natco). The claim of Roche was based on infringement of its patent for a compound Risdiplam marketed under the brand name EVRYSDI® used in the...

The ongoing legal battle between Nike and Lululemon has become a focal point in the sportswear industry, highlighting the increasing importance of intellectual property (IP) protection in a highly competitive market. The case, which began in January 2023, centers...

Pfizer and BioNTech scored a significant win at the US Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB or the Board) over COVID-19 vaccine technology. The Board invalidated all challenged claims in two of Moderna's patents related to its Spikevax COVID-19 vaccine, citing strong...

We recently had the opportunity to speak with Keith Bergelt, the CEO of Open Invention Network (OIN). OIN is the largest patent non-aggression community in history and the forerunner to many other organizations that have been formed to collectively shield companies...

In an important decision that has significant implications for patent enforcement in the biotherapeutic and cell culture arts, the Federal Circuit has reaffirmed the International Trade Commission’s (ITC) authority to block the importation of infringing. The ruling in...

The case involves a patent dispute between Pfizer Inc. and its subsidiaries (FoldRx Pharmaceuticals, LLC, PF PRISM IMB B.V., and Wyeth LLC) (Petitioners) against Softgel Healthcare Private Limited (Respondent), an Indian company. The dispute centers around the alleged...

Earlier this year, the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) instituted new fees related to the filing of continuation patent applications. As a refresher, a continuation application is a second or subsequent patent application filing that claims the benefit of an...

Register now at Early Bird rates for the ECTA 43rd Annual Conference in Berlin on 18-21 June 2025! This year’s Conference 'Bears on the Loose' 🐻😎 celebrates Berlin’s heraldic bear and the city's vibrant atmosphere. With its melting pot of cultures, rich history, and...

The UK Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO) may be discouraging innovation in Quantum Computing by making it harder to patent technology in this sector, says intellectual property law firm Mathys & Squire. That risks driving developers of Quantum Computing to...

Harvard University and Samsung have settled a patent infringement dispute concerning semiconductor manufacturing techniques. On January 28, Harvard dismissed its lawsuit filed in the Eastern District of Texax in August of 2024, waiving rights to refile. The parties...

The 2024 AIPPI World Congress, held in the picturesque city of Hangzhou from October 19 to 22, was a landmark event for the global intellectual property (IP) community. Hosting more than 2,300 IP professionals from 92 countries, the Congress underscored China’s...

In the ever-evolving test of obviousness, what has been consistently critical is the technical opinion of the expert or “person skilled in the art” (PSITA). Identifying who this expert is for a particular patent/invention is, therefore, critical. A creative leap was...

The case of Steuben Foods, Inc. v. Shibuya Hoppmann Corporation focused on the alleged patent infringement of claims of the US Patent No. 6,209,591, No. 6,536,188, and No. 6,702,985 owned by Steuben and related to the operation of machinery used in the bottling...

On January 16, 2025, the Unified Patent Court (UPC) retained jurisdiction to rule on the determination of damages following a finding of infringement by a national court and also to rule on acts before it entered into force. The UPC thus continues to resist all...

On January 14, 2025, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) issued a precedential ruling in Lynk Labs, Inc. v. Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. concerning the earliest date a cited patent application publication (PUB) can be relied on as prior art in an...

In US patent law, a provisional application is a 'placeholder' that allows an applicant to file without a formal patent claim, often before the idea is fully developed, to secure an earlier priority date. However, provisional applications are typically low-budget...

The procedure of calling for third-party opinions was introduced on April 1, 2022, in patent and utility model infringement suits. In the second case under the proceeding, the Intellectual Property High Court (IPHC) issued a request for opinions with a deadline of...

Macleods Pharmaceuticals Ltd., the petitioner, is engaged in manufacturing and marketing diverse pharmaceutical products, including anti-diabetic drugs. The respondent, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH & Co. KG, is a company organized under the laws of Germany and...

In the appeal of Syngenta Crop Protection Ag v. Assistant Controller Of Patents before the Delhi High Court, the refusal order passed by the Ld. Controller of Patents on Application No. 202117035647 titled “Methods of Controlling or Preventing Infestation of Rice...

Patent applicants in India often face a practical question: what is the last possible opportunity to file a divisional patent application? While the Indian Patents Act (1970) specifies this can be done “any time before the grant of the parent patent application,”...

Shoe manufacturers in a race to develop more advanced technologies such as carbon plates and nitrogen bubbles – patent and trademark litigation has followed New entrants like Li-Ning, Xtep, Hoka, and On are competing to supply elite runners. Nike is leading the way...

Background The plaintiffs, AstraZeneca, filed a suit (CS (Comm.) 101/2022) at the Delhi High Court seeking a permanent injunction to restrain the defendant, Westcoast Pharmaceutical Works Limited, from infringing their patent IN 297581. The patent was for the novel...

The recent judgment dated October 9, 2024, by the Hon'ble High Court of Delhi in F. Hoffmann-La Roche AG & Anr. v. Zydus Lifesciences Limited, CS(COMM) 159/2024 [Neutral Citation: 2024:DHC:7868}, has brought the process of claim mapping to the forefront in patent...

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has withdrawn its proposed rule to amend terminal disclaimer requirements to address non-statutory double patenting. Originally published in the Federal Register on May 10, 2024, the proposed rule sought to ensure...

In a succinctly reasoned 10 pages of judgment, His Honour Judge Hacon has dismissed a claim for registered design infringement about a tool for getting a key through a letterbox and up to the lock on the inside of a door. Judge Hacon's analysis in Barber v. Wakefield...

Emotional Perception AI Limited (EPAIL) has been granted leave to appeal by the UK Supreme Court in its ongoing battle to secure a patent for its music recommender system using an Artificial Neural Network (ANN). This follows appeals in two instances after the UK...

The case involves an appeal by COMVIVA TECHNOLOGIES LIMITED (C.A.(COMM.IPD-PAT)492/2022) against the decision of the Assistant Controller of Patents and Designs. The Controller refused the patent application titled "Methods and Devices for Authentication of an...

Why would a trillion-dollar company leading the smartwatch market challenge a barely known watch? In this case, Apple sued Masimo for patent infringement, targeting its health watch which has negligible sales. In October 2024, a Delaware jury ruled that Masimo’s watch...

Nintendo and The Pokémon Company made waves in the video game industry when they jointly announced a patent infringement lawsuit against Pocketair, Inc. back in September 2024. Their press release cryptically alleged that Pokémon competitor and monster-catching game...

In the life span of any business, the investment goes way beyond the financial aspects. It's the years of dedication, contemplating, experimenting, and actively refining your idea of a product or service cut through the market. From the moment an idea is born,...

The UK Government’s 2024 Budget, while squarely focused on tax increases and revenue measures, suggests a pragmatic recognition by the new Labour administration that sustainable tax receipts are ideally underpinned by economic growth and wealth creation. In a global...

To protect our designs, ideas, and innovations, we must think like an infringer. May AI allow bad actors to knock off your design… and get away with it? First, we need to understand AI-assisted design. Like all new tech, AI will follow Amara’s law. We overestimate the...

The Calcutta High Court recently adopted the much-awaited Intellectual Property Rights Division Rules, 2023 (Calcutta IPD Rules), making it the third High Court in India, after Delhi and Madras, to implement specialized regulations for IP matters. While the Calcutta...

AstraZeneca is a world-renowned pharmaceutical company. It owns many patents in Russia and takes steps to protect them against encroachers. Its medicines are exempt from sanctions because they are mainly used for the life-preserving treatment of cancer. Axelpharm, a...

On October 1, 2024, the USPTO published a new final rule, Rules Governing Director Review of Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) Decisions. 89 Fed. Reg. 79,744 (October 1, 2024). The final rule codifies many aspects of the PTAB’s revised interim Director Review...

AIPPI World Congress 2024 opened its doors in Hangzhou, China, on Saturday, 19 October. All attending were warmly welcomed, and there was general excitement for the next few days of educational sessions, member meetings, and networking. Guoqing ZHANG, Vice Premier of...

On September 20, 2024, the Delhi High Court ruled in Pioneer Overseas Corporation v. M/s Evercrop Agro Science & Star Agrotech Pvt. Ltd. (CS(COMM) 759/2024), a significant case addressing plant variety infringement under the Protection of Plant Varieties and...

In September 2024, the Munich Court (Germany) found three defendants guilty of commercial gang fraud for sending misleading invoices to EUIPO customers. Each defendant was sentenced to one year and 10 months of imprisonment, suspended with a three-year probation...

Out of the blue on September 19, 2024, video game company Nintendo and The Pokémon Company issued a joint news release via a post on the Nintendo website. The post asserted that Pocketpair infringed certain patents but contained sparse details about the alleged...

From October 5, 2024, the amount of patent fees collected in Russia has increased in accordance with the relevant draft government resolution. The changes will affect legally significant actions related to such intellectual property items as inventions, utility...

Launch of Blockchain Zone to challenge patents owned by non-practicing entities (NPEs) that could impact the open-source ecosystem NPEs still account for 58% of all [US] patent litigation; partnership aims to deter NPE activity in crypto October 1, 2024 - Today,...

BMW Group prevailed in its long-running battle against Arigna Technology Ltd. While Arigna’s efforts spanned years and multiple venues — BMW Group’s multi-faceted legal strategy and refusal to settle ultimately forced Arigna to fold. Pressuring from all sides: BMW...

This August saw the first denial of an inter partes review petition for a design patent at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) since the Federal Circuit’s en banc decision in LKQ Corporation v. GM Global Technology Operations LLC. In Next Step Group, Inc. v....

Late August 2024 saw two UPC cases decided in Avago’s patent litigation battles with Tesla, with Tesla coming out in front in each case. In the first decision, by the UPC Local Division Hamburg, Avago’s patent EP1612910B1 was narrowed to such an extent that there was...

European Patent Office (EPO) smart cards will expire soon. The UK Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO) has updated its information on GOV.UK with specific details on what actions customers need to take and when. After September 30, 2024, customers will no longer be...

The convergence of various technologies on single devices has posed significant challenges to technology developers. The Appellant, BlackBerry Limited, is a corporation organized under the laws of Ontario, Canada, specializes in providing telecommunication products,...

Many remarkable legal actions have been taken on behalf of MR Technologies GmbH. Recently, it proved to be victorious in a dispute against Western Digital Technologies Inc. by defending its IP at the US District Court for the Central District of California....

With rising prices, it can be tough to look cute on a budget. The rise of fast fashion and “dupes” – cheap imitations of more expensive goods – have captivated the younger generation. In the past, wearing an imitation of a brand was looked down on. The new generation...

The USPTO has issued updated guidelines on patent subject matter eligibility, specifically addressing artificial intelligence (AI) inventions under 35 USC 101. These updates, aligned with Executive Order 14110, clarify the evaluation process for AI innovations,...

Self-driving technology, once the stuff of science fiction, has become a rapidly advancing field poised to revolutionize transportation. At the heart of this technological evolution are companies like Uber and Waymo, pioneers in developing autonomous vehicles....

The UK Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO) has today issued new guidance reminding legal professionals of their obligation under the Civil Procedure Rules (CPR) to notify the UKIPO of new court cases started in the UK courts, which involve registered intellectual...

Comments on the Unified Patent Court’s (UPC) decision to grant Mathys & Squire's access to evidence in a Unified Patent Court case between Astellas and Healios Background Mathys & Squire, the intellectual property law firm, had brought a test case to try and...

Terex India Private Limited (Terex) filed an appeal against the order passed by the Deputy Controller of Patent and Designs on March 2, 2023 (under Section 117A of The Patents Act, 1970), challenging the refusal of the post-grant opposition filed by Terex for the...

It is very common for patentees to have multiple granted patents within the same patent family, and due to patent term adjustment (PTA), one or more of those patents could expire well beyond the expiration date of other patents in the family. However, what if an...

The Hon'ble Division Bench, High Court of Gujarat recently delivered a judgment on July 19, 2024, in the patent infringement case involving Sonani Industries Pvt Ltd (formerly Sonani Jewels Pvt. Ltd.) and Galactica Processing Technologies LLP & Ors. This appeal...

The Legislative Assembly of El Salvador has approved a new Intellectual Property Law, repealing the previous Law on Trademarks and Other Distinctive Signs, as well as the Intellectual Property Law that had been in force since 1993 and its regulations. The new law...

China has the highest prevalence of type 2 diabetes (T2D) and obesity in the world, owing to growing trends in Western dietary patterns, sedentary lifestyles, and urbanization, making it a lucrative market for GLP-1 receptor agonist developers. According to Clarivate...