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Patent Trial and Appeal Board United States Patent and Trademark Office Intellectual Property Protection

Morgan Lewis

USPTO Tightens Limits on AAPA Use in IPRs Following Qualcomm Precedent

Morgan Lewis on

A recent memo from the acting director of the US Patent and Trademark Office directs the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) to reject inter partes review (IPR) petitions that use “applicant admitted prior art (AAPA), expert...more

Jones Day

Acting Director Reverses Previous Discretionary Denial

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For the first time under the bifurcated institution procedures, the Acting Director reversed her own prior discretionary denial, citing changed circumstances based on a settlement in the parallel district court litigation. ...more

Loeb & Loeb LLP

White House Executive Order Disbands Patent Examiners’ Union

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On Thursday, August 28, 2025, the President of the United States issued an Executive Order which effectively disbanded the union representing patent examiners (POPA). As a justification, the Order stated patent examiners are...more

Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.L.L.C.

U.S. IP Update – August 2025

Sterne Kessler’s U.S. IP Update is a newsletter delivering the latest developments in U.S. intellectual property law, tailored for companies and legal counsel in Korea. Stay informed on key court decisions, policy changes,...more

Quinn Emanuel

Patent Trial and Appeal Board Issues New Guidance Regarding Use of "General Knowledge" in IPR Petitions

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On July 31st, the Patent Trial and Appeal Board ("PTAB") issued a three-page memorandum stating that it will “enforce and no longer waive the requirement of 37 C.F.R. § 42.104(b)(4).”...more

Ballard Spahr LLP

Life Sciences Perspective On Emerging U.S. Patent Reform Efforts

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Though largely absent from mainstream news, proposed reforms to patent law are poised to affect everything from biotech startups to major pharmaceutical R&D programs. Specifically, there are four ongoing bipartisan efforts to...more

Alston & Bird

Intellectual Property Litigation Newsletter | August 2025

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Welcome to the Intellectual Property Litigation Newsletter, our review of decisions and trends in the intellectual property arena. In this edition, we learn that duping the court can prove costly, excluding a witness may...more

Jones Day

Two Week Deadline for PTAB to Issue Notice of Filing Date Accorded

Jones Day on

On July 18, 2025, Scott R. Boalick, Chief Administrative Patent Judge for the Patent Trials and Appeals Board (“PTAB”), announced that, absent good cause, the PTAB will issue a Notice of Filing Date Accorded within 14 days...more

Jones Day

Subsequent Challenge Does Not Justify Discretionary Denial

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In a recent decision, Acting Director Coke Morgan Stewart denied a Patent Owner’s request for discretionary denial in LifeVac, LLC v. DCSTAR, Inc., IPR2025-00454. Even though Petitioner had previously challenged the same...more

Jones Day

Acting Director Clarifies Multi-Petition Policy for Competing Constructions

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On June 25, 2025, Acting Director Coke Stewart released an informative decision vacating institution of inter partes review (“IPR”) based on two petitions that were primarily filed to present two different constructions....more

McDermott Will & Schulte

Game over: Prior interference doesn’t preclude IPR proceeding

The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed a Patent Trial & Appeal Board unpatentability determination during an inter partes review (IPR) proceeding, concluding that the Board’s decision to not apply...more

A&O Shearman

Non-Application Of Interference Estoppel By PTAB In An IPR Institution Decision Found To Be Unreviewable

A&O Shearman on

On July 22, 2025, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit concluded that the Patent Trial and Appeal Board’s (the “PTAB”) decision not to apply interference estoppel and, therefore, to institute an inter partes review...more

ArentFox Schiff

USPTO Ends Remote PTAB Hearings Effective September 1

ArentFox Schiff on

The US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has announced that, effective September 1, all PTAB hearings will be conducted in person at USPTO offices, marking a departure from the virtual and hybrid formats adopted in recent...more

Jones Day

Discretionary Denial Where Inventors Petitioned for Unpatentability

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Coke Morgan Stewart, the acting director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”), exercised discretion under 35 U.S.C. § 314(a) to deny Tessell’s (“Petitioner’s”) petition in favor of Nutanix (“Patent...more

Jones Day

Discretionary Denial of IPR Institution Due to Advanced Hatch-Waxman Litigation

Jones Day on

In a recent decision, the Patent Trial and Appeals Board (“PTAB”) exercised its discretion under 35 U.S.C. § 314(a) to deny institution of an inter partes review (“IPR”) after applying the Fintiv factors, despite Petitioner’s...more

Morgan Lewis

‘Settled Expectations,’ PTAB’s New Discretionary Denial Factor, Gains Additional Footing in Dabico

Morgan Lewis on

Acting Director of the USPTO Coke Morgan Stewart recently discretionarily denied institution of an inter partes review (IPR) based on a new consideration, “settled expectations,” that is, the length of time that the...more

Jones Day

Delegated Rehearing Panel Sends Lifeline to Mercedes-Benz

Jones Day on

A Delegated Rehearing Panel (“DRP”) recently modified the PTAB’s construction of the claim term “workload” and remanded, giving Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (“Petitioner”) another opportunity to challenge a processor patent....more

Jones Day

USPTO Acting Director Denies IPR Institution Based on "Settled Expectations"

Jones Day on

Under a new U.S. Patent and Trademark Office ("USPTO") policy issued in March 2025, pre-institution inter partes review ("IPR") proceedings are now bifurcated, consisting of a first phase in which the director considers...more

Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP

New Settled Expectations Policy at the PTAB Augurs Major Practice Changes

In a startling development, Acting Director of the USPTO Coke Morgan Stewart has denied institution of an inter partes review (IPR) on the basis of “settled expectations,” on the sole ground that the subject patent had been...more

Volpe Koenig

“Settled Expectations” as the New Gatekeeper for PTAB Discretionary Denials: Why Late-Stage IPRs Are Getting Harder to File

Volpe Koenig on

When Acting USPTO Director Coke Morgan Stewart denied institution in Dabico v. AXA Power IPR2025-00408  Paper 21, much of the commentary focused on the result....more

Volpe Koenig

When an IDS Comes Back to Haunt You: Lessons from iRhythm v. Welch Allyn

Volpe Koenig on

Patent attorneys are well-versed in the function of the Information Disclosure Statement (IDS) during prosecution. We understand that listing prior art in an IDS satisfies the duty of candor, helps insulate patents from...more

Jones Day

Applying Fintiv to a Parallel ITC Investigation

Jones Day on

The Patent Trial and Appeals Board (“PTAB”) recently denied institution of an inter partes review (“IPR”), exercising its discretion under 35 U.S.C. § 314(a)and Apple Inc. v. Fintiv Inc., IPR2020-00019 (PTAB Mar. 20, 2020)...more

Jones Day

April 2025 Institution Rate Slips Below 45 Percent

Jones Day on

The PTAB has published its monthly statistics wrap up for April 2025. As expected, those statistics show a significant decline in the institution rate compared to the first six months of the fiscal year. In those first six...more

Jones Day

Acting Director Releases First Decisions Under New Bifurcated Process

Jones Day on

On May 16, 2025, USPTO Acting Director Coke Morgan Stewart released the first four discretionary denial decisions under the PTAB’s new process. Under the new process, the parties separately brief discretionary denial issues...more

McDermott Will & Schulte

It’s a Matter of Timing: The PTO’s Latest Decisions on Discretionary Denials

Since the US Patent & Trademark Office’s (PTO) decision to rescind former Director Vidal’s memo on procedures for post-grant proceedings where there is parallel district court litigation, Current Acting Director Coke Morgan...more

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