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Law Firms Mentioned

• Akin Gump
• Baker Botts
• Bartlit Beck
• Beck Ross
• Brooks Kushman
• Capshaw DeRieux
• Covington & Burling
• Crowell & Moring
• Dovel & Luner
• Durie Tangri
• Finnegan
• Fish & Richardson
• Foley & Lardner
• Gibson Dunn
• Gilbert LLP
• Hall Estill
• Haynes and Boone
• Irell & Manella
• McCarter & English
• Sidley Austin

Companies Mentioned

• AT&T Inc.
• Affymetrix, Inc.
• Allergan Inc.
• Apple Inc.
• AstraZeneca
• Avery Dennison Corporation
• Boston Scientific Corporation
• Broadcom Corporation
• EarthLink, Inc.
• Eastman Kodak Co.
• Ford Motor Company
• GlaxoSmithKline
• Google Inc.
• Hi-Tech Pharmacal Co., Inc.
• Illumina, Inc.
• Johnson & Johnson
• LSI Corporation
• Microsoft Corporation
• Motorola Inc.
• Novartis AG

Cases Mentioned

• E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company v. Kolon Industries, Inc. et al
• Market Masters-Legal, A Resonance Company, Inc. v. Parker Waichman Alonso LLP
• Voda v. Medtronic Inc et al
• UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH OF THE COMMONWEALTH SYSTEM OF HIGHER EDUCATION v. VARIAN MEDICAL SYSTEMS, INC.
• Affymetrix, Inc. et al v. Illumina, Inc.
• ASTRAZENECA AB et al v. LUPIN LTD. et al
• Rovi Corporation et al v. Hulu LLC
• Apple, Inc. v. Motorola, Inc. et al
• LUPIN LTD et al v. MERCK, SHARP & DOHME CORP
• Klausner Technologies, Inc. v. MetroPCS Communications, Inc. et al
• Adventure Advertising, LLC v. Simon & Schuster, Inc. et al
• Cordell v. The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
• Allergan, Inc. v. HI-TECH PHARMACAL CO.

• January 27, 2012

  USPTO Wipes Out Key Rambus DRAM Patent

  The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on Tuesday invalidated another Rambus Inc. patent that has been at the center of the technology licensing firm’s victories at the U.S. International Trade Commission.

• January 27, 2012

  Ex-Groupon Sales Reps Fire Back At Trade Secrets Claims

  Three former Groupon Inc. sales reps the company sued for defecting to Google Inc. and allegedly stealing trade secrets filed a countercomplaint in Illinois state court Friday, alleging the online coupon company intentionally filed sham litigation and asking the court to void noncompete covenants in their Groupon contracts.

• January 27, 2012

  Hulu Escapes Rovi's Suit Over Video Guide Patents

  A Delaware federal judge on Friday dismissed entertainment data provider Rovi Corp.'s complaint alleging popular online video provider Hulu LLC infringed three patents related to electronic programming guides, saying the suit must contain more facts supporting the allegations in order to continue.

• January 27, 2012

  Allergan Targets Hi-Tech Over IP For Glaucoma Generic

  Allergan Inc. lodged a patent infringement suit in Texas federal court on Friday seeking to stop Hi-Tech Pharmacal Co. Inc. from launching a generic version of Allergan's glaucoma medication Lumigan.

• January 27, 2012

  9th Circ. Urged To Uphold Fee Award Against Righthaven

  A man who won a judgment of attorneys’ fees and costs after a judge tossed a case brought against him by copyright holding company Righthaven LLC told the Ninth Circuit on Wednesday the judgment should be upheld, arguing the district court had used its discretion properly in granting the award.

• January 27, 2012

  DuPont's $920M Trade Secrets Win In Kevlar Suit Upheld

  A Virginia federal judge on Friday rejected a pair of post-trial motions lodged by body armor maker Kolon Industries Inc., leaving intact a $920 million trade secrets verdict for industry rival DuPont Co.

• January 27, 2012

  Legal Ad Co.’s Contract Claim Nixed By Copyright Law

  A Massachusetts federal judge ruled Wednesday that U.S. copyright law preempted legal advertising company Market Masters-Legal's claim that personal injury firm Parker Waichman LLP had breached its contract by continuing to use ad materials from Market Masters after dropping the company.

• January 27, 2012

  Klausner Trains Fire On MetroPCS In Voice Mail IP Blitz

  Patent-holding company Klausner Technologies Inc. sued MetroPCS Communications Inc. in Texas federal court on Thursday, alleging the wireless carrier infringed two of its visual voice mail patents.

• January 27, 2012

  Medtronic Hit With $10M Jury Verdict Over Catheter Patent

  An Oklahoma federal jury slapped Medtronic Inc. with an almost $10 million verdict on Thursday in a suit brought by a cardiologist alleging the medical technology company infringed a patent covering a catheter design used in angioplasty.

• January 27, 2012

  Samsung Loses Another Round In Apple Fight In Germany

  A German court on Friday tossed Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.’s second patent claim against Apple Inc. over mobile telecommunications technology a week after the court rejected its claim over a related patent, according to a patent expert’s blog.

• January 27, 2012

  Weisbrod Matteis Lands Tech IP Expert

  Washington-based litigation firm Weisbrod Matteis & Copley PLLC has lured a former technology trade secrets prosecutor for the U.S. Department of Justice from Shulman Rogers Gandal Pordy & Ecker PA, the firm announced Monday.

• January 27, 2012

  Fed. Circ. Overturns $56M Light Patent Verdict Against Ford

  The Federal Circuit on Friday tossed a $56 million infringement verdict against Ford Motor Co. after finding a lower court had failed to recognize the similarities between the automobile emergency light patent-in-suit and a French patent published nearly 40 years earlier.

• January 27, 2012

  Herman Cain, Simon & Schuster Sued Over Book Photo

  A Georgia advertising agency that claims it took the photo used on the cover of erstwhile presidential candidate Herman Cain's autobiography hit Cain and publisher Simon & Schuster Inc. with a copyright suit Thursday, alleging the photo was used without permission.

• January 27, 2012

  McGraw-Hill Doesn't Pay Foreign Royalties: Class Action

  An author slammed The McGraw-Hill Cos. Inc. with a proposed breach of contract class action Wednesday in New York, claiming the publisher failed to properly compensate authors for royalties on books sold for use in foreign countries.

• January 27, 2012

  5 Ways To Ramp Up Your Patent Portfolio

  With technology giants expected to jostle for bankrupt Eastman Kodak Co.'s enviable collection of patents, attorneys say building a strong patent portfolio is not only critical for companies wanting to protect their innovations and set themselves apart from rivals, it gives them more leverage in litigation.

• January 27, 2012

  EC Proceeds With Probe Of French Drug Co.'s Dealings

  The European Commission has dropped its claims that Servier SAS provided false and misleading information during an investigation, but will continue its probe of whether the French pharmaceutical company reached anti-competitive deals with generic-drug makers, the regulator said Friday.

• January 26, 2012

  Motorola Didn't Infringe Apple Network Component IP: Judge

  A federal judge in Illinois on Wednesday further whittled down a sprawling patent dispute between Apple Inc. and Motorola Inc. over smartphone technology, ruling that Motorola didn't infringe two Apple patents related to replaceable network components.

• January 26, 2012

  Jury Finds Varian Willfully Infringed Cancer Patent

  A Pennsylvania federal jury on Thursday reached a verdict that Varian Medical Systems Inc. willfully infringed a University of Pittsburgh patent for a device used in radiation cancer treatments.

• January 26, 2012

  Affymetrix Suit Over Illumina Microarray IP Reopened

  A Wisconsin federal judge reopened a lawsuit Thursday in which genetic research company Affymetrix Inc. seeks to add an inventor to two Illumina Inc. patents related to microarray technology, and shot down a renewed dismissal bid from Illumina.

• January 26, 2012

  AstraZeneca, Lupin Soothe Nexium Patent Fight

  Pharmaceutical giants AstraZeneca AB, Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp. and KBI Inc. reached a settlement Thursday with Indian drugmaker Lupin Ltd. in a patent dispute over stomach acid reflux drug Nexium.

Expert Analysis

• Case Study: In Re XMH Corp.

  

  The Seventh Circuit ruling in In re XMH Corp. is consistent with several bankruptcy court opinions following the "universal rule" that a trademark license cannot be assigned without the licensor's express consent. The decision is notable, however, as it is the first published opinion on the circuit level regarding the issue, says Joseph Tiller of Jones Day.

• Speeding Up USPTO Patent Appeals

  

  Recent changes to the rules for ex parte appeals to the Board of Patent Appeals from a final rejection of a patent application should make the appeal process quicker and easier on the owners and patent examiners, as well as focus the board’s attention on the substantive issues in the appeal, says Kenneth Horton of Kirton McConkie PC.

• 2 PCT Written Opinions For The Price Of 1

  

  The European Patent Office's new procedures provide certainty relating to additional examination opportunities that are available when the EPO is the International Preliminary Examining Authority, which raises several strategy questions for Patent Cooperation Treaty applicants, says Stuart Schanbacher of Condo Roccia LLP.

• Biosimilars Law In Limbo

  

  Although the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act was signed into law in 2010 as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, biosimilars law is not a settled matter. The debate between supporters and opponents is still ongoing regarding many aspects of the PPACA, and the BPCIA could be subsumed into this political battle, says Brian Dorn of Merchant & Gould PC.

• Year In Review: Significant Developments Under EEA

  

  Last year was the most active and productive one since the enactment of the Economic Espionage Act more than 15 years ago. The convictions obtained and significant sentences imposed in 2011 send a strong message of general and specific deterrence, say Mark Krotoski and Richard Scott of the U.S. Department of Justice.

• Art Law: The Year In Review

  

  The year 2011 was packed with art litigation that ranged from broad constitutional questions to the ever-present scourge of forgeries. Here are highlights of some of the most important cases, say Christine Steiner and Lano Williams of Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP.

• Changing The Rules Of The Game: Preissuance Submissions

  

  Prior to the passage of the America Invents Act, submissions of prior art by third parties were allowed in pending patent applications, but the third parties were not allowed to comment on the prior art. Preissuance submissions by third parties will create a quasi-inter partes process and result in higher quality patents, says Patrick Jewik of Kilpatrick Townsend and Stockton LLP.

• Limiting E-Discovery In TTAB Proceedings

  

  While the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board's recent decision in Frito-Lay North America Inc. v. Princeton Vanguard LLC does not impose bright-line rules, it suggests that a party seeking massive and expensive e-discovery will have an uphill fight in justifying that effort and expense, say Andrew Baum and David Copland of Foley & Lardner LLP.

• IP Counsel's 'Cheat Sheet' To FCPA And Travel Act

  

  The tactics used to register, challenge or enforce intellectual property rights in foreign jurisdictions must be carefully viewed through the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act/Travel Act lens. We have created the IP FCPA/Travel Act decision tree, which uniquely traces out the key questions to be answered in any potential corruption case, say Douglas Sawyer and Markus Funk of Perkins Coie LLP.

• Domain Name Collateral And Trademark Tangles

  

  The Ninth Circuit decisions in GoPets Ltd. v. Hise and Office Depot Inc. v. Zuccarini have made it easier for creditors to confidently access and auction domain names as security for loans or to satisfy judgments. However, there are trademark and administrative obstacles that continue to hinder a creditor’s clean monetization of the value in domain names, says Gavin George of Haynes and Boone LLP.