March 2014

Foreseeability Does Not Bar the Doctrine of Equivalents, Including for Means-Plus-Function Limitations
In the recent Ring & Pinion Service Inc. v. ARB Corp. decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit held that the foreseeability of an equivalent at the time of filing does not, in itself, create a bar to reliance on the doctrine of equivalents (DOE).¹  The unanimous Federal Circuit panel confirmed that infringement can indeed be found under the DOE, notwithstanding that, at the time of the application, the equivalent limitation in question was foreseeable to one of ordinary skill.²   More

The Saga of Patent Eligibility of Business Methods Continues in SmartGene v. ABL
We reported in the last edition that the U.S. Supreme Court had agreed to consider the case of Alice Corp. Pty. Ltd. v. CLS Bank International (No. 13-298) regarding patent-eligible subject matter.  The CLS Bank decision was covered in the June 2013 edition of Full Disclosure.   More

Rule Review
The USPTO’s After Final Consideration Pilot Program 2.0: An Important Tool to Streamline Prosecution
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EPO Practice
Intermediate Generalization: Amending European Patents and Applications Under Article 123(2) EPC
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At the Federal Circuit
Means-Plus-Function Plus Priority: The Federal Circuit’s Decision in EnOcean GmbH
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If you have any questions or need additional information, please contact:

Eric P. Raciti, Editor-in-Chief
Elizabeth A. Doherty, Ph.D., Associate Editor
J. Derek McCorquindale, Associate Editor