Bilski et al. v. Kappos is number one on Law 360’s list of cases IP attorneys are sure to keep track of in 2010. Law 360 explains that the Supreme Court is set to rule in the coming months on whether the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit went too far when it established a test for patent eligibility of business methods that requires patentable processes to be either tied to a machine or to involve a transformation. Finnegan partner Michael Jakes, representing the inventors, said the “decision could impact all method and process patents.” What subject matter is eligible for patent protection is a threshold issue and it is core to what kind of role the patent system will have in the economy. Princo Corp. et al. v. International Trade Commission et al. also made Law 360’s list: the Federal Circuit agreed in October to rehear Philip’s Corp’s dispute with Princo over whether Philips entered into an illegal agreement with Sony Corp to limit the development of alternative technology for making recordable compact discs. Princo initially appealed to the Federal Circuit after the ITC found its recordable CDs infringed six patents by Philips and rejected both of its patent misuse arguments. Finnegan’s Jakes explained that “the case deals with what parties can do with patent pools and if they are licensing a group of patents, what patents can be included in that particular pool.” Jakes added, “The decision to rehear the case reflects a growing interest in the anti-competitive effects of patents.”
