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Are Ex Parte Reexaminations An Overlooked Method of Challenging Patents?
Chris Rourk and Blake Dietrich
In the wake of the September 16, 2011, enactment of the America Invents Act ("AIA"), many third-party individuals and organizations began utilizing the newly created post-grant proceedings to challenge the validity of issued patents. In particular, petitioners began filing post-grant reviews and covered business method challenges, as well as inter partes reviews, at rates that greatly exceeded expectations. One often overlooked option remains a viable, and often more desirable, candidate for third-party challenges to issued patents: ex parte reexaminations. 
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US-EU Agree on Privacy Shield to Replace Invalidated Safe Harbor
Sara Hollan Chelette
On February 2, 2016, it was announced that the United States and the European Union had reached an agreement on a new framework to replace the Safe Harbor that was invalidated back in October 2015. The new framework, called the "Privacy Shield," places stronger obligations on U.S. companies to protect the personal data of Europeans and requires stronger monitoring and enforcement by the U.S. Department of Commerce and the FTC.
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 Out-of-Office Responses: Really?
Bob Latham
One of the unfortunate byproducts of the 24/7 era in which we exist is the expectation that people will get back to you within five minutes of your sending an email to them. And an unfortunate byproduct of that expectation is that people feel compelled to craft out-of-office auto responses that attempt to justify the fact that any reply may be delayed beyond five minutes. Attorneys approach this in a variety of ways, most of them uncomfortable, ill-advised, nonsensical, or all of the above.
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