June 2014
An Update on Subject Matter Eligibility in the United States
The past three months have been a busy period for those following the U.S. patent eligibility law. Recent examination guidance published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) may affect patent applications with composition or method claims in a variety of chemical, materials science, and biological
arts. The Federal Circuit’s recent decision in
In re Roslin Institute (Edinburgh), No. 2013-1407 (Fed. Cir. May 8, 2014), also provides information about how the U.S. courts may consider patent eligibility of composition claims in the wake of recent U.S. Supreme Court case law.
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PTAB Holds Challenged Claims Unpatentable as Obvious over a Combination of References
In covered business method post-grant proceeding
Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. v. Progressive Casualty Insurance Co., the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) held all of the challenged claims of U.S. Patent No. 6,064,970 (“the ’970 patent”) unpatentable as obvious under 35 U.S.C. § 103(a). CBM2012-00002,
Paper 66 (Jan. 23, 2014). The PTAB found that the Challenger met its burden of proving, by a preponderance of the evidence, each of the three grounds of invalidity on which the PTAB instituted the review.
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