Menu

Tag: SCOTUS

Jul 25, 2019

Update: Scandalous Marks at the PTO

Surprised Teenager

On July 3, 2019, the PTO issued Examination Guide 2-19, entitled “Examination Guidance for Section 2(a)’s Scandalous Marks Provision after Iancu v. Brunetti.” By way of background, in December 2017 the CAFC held that the provision violates the First Amendment because it restricts free speech. In re Brunetti, 877 F.3d 1330, 125 USPQ2d 1072 (Fed. Cir. 2017). Since then, the PTO has been suspending action on pending applications refused under the “scandalousness” provision until final disposition of the matter. On June 24, 2019, SCOTUS affirmed the judgment of the Federal Circuit. 588 U.S. ___, 2019 USPQ2d 232043 (2019). In an… Read more

Jun 8, 2017

SCOTUS Clarifies Long Established Patent Exhaustion Doctrine

Printer Cartridges

On Tuesday, May 30th, in its decision in Impression Products, Inc. v. Lexmark International, Inc., the U.S. Supreme Court provided clarity to the long-established patent exhaustion doctrine in connection with the resale of patented products, stating that a patent owner can no longer control its patented product under patent law after the authorized sale regardless of post-sale restrictions, but may restrict further sales of the product through other areas of law such as contract law. Patent exhaustion is a U.S. common law patent doctrine that limits the extent to which patent holders can control an individual article of a patented… Read more

Mar 10, 2016

Supreme Court Calendar is IP-Heavy for 2016

By J. Gibson Lanier Maybe Chief Justice Roberts did not get the memo, but despite reports that he desires to limit access to the courts, this does not appear to be true with respect to matters relating to intellectual property.  True, this may not be 2013 with significant rulings on 35 U.S.C. § 101, but to be sure the potential Supreme Court calendar for 2016 will have a significant impact on intellectual property.  It will interesting to see how these cases will be handled, particularly with the present vacancy in the Court. Among the cases already accepted by the court… Read more