Supreme Court Distinguishes Novelty, Obviousness In Weighing Medical Method Patent Eligibility

The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments Dec. 7 on the patent eligibility of methods of medical diagnosis and treatment under 35 U.S.C. §101, but the debate turned early and often to the relative roles of Section 101 versus patentability issues of anticipation and obviousness under Sections 102 and 103…

Supreme Court Takes Two More Patent Cases for Term Beginning in October

Patent law will once again be featured in U.S. Supreme Court deliberations next fall, as the court June 27 added two more certiorari grants to the Mayo v. Prometheus review decision less than a week earlier…

PTO Issues Multi-Factor Guidance for Determining Patent Eligibility Following Supreme Court’s Bilski Decision

Four weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court’s Bilski decision, the Patent and Trademark Office issued guidance July 27 to patent examiners in the form of…

ANALYSIS: Patent Community Applauds Supreme Court’s Restraint in Bilski Decision, But Rues Lack of Guidance

Members of the U.S. patent community consulted by BNA expressed surprise and general pleasure that the U.S. Supreme Court chose not to exclude business method…

Supreme Court Rejects Bilski Abstract Ideas, Does Not Exclude Business Method Patents

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously on June 28 that the Federal Circuit’s machine-or-transformation test is only “a useful and important clue or…

Department of Health and Human Services Panel Approves Report Endorsing Gene Patent Infringement Exception

A U.S. Department of Health and Human Services advisory committee Feb. 5 approved a final report that included a recommendation that an exception to…

District Court Hears Oral Arguments in Case Challenging Gene Patent Constitutionality

Patent eligibility under Section 101 of the Patent Act took center stage Feb. 2 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of…