Category: Patents / Trade Secrets
Can the grant of a European patent be obtained by providing technical evidence that is not contained in the application?
The Enlarged Board of Appeal of the European Patent Office (EPO) has accepted the possibility of submitting new evidence of the inventive step of a patent application or patent that has been granted during the grant and opposition procedures. Article 52(1) of the European Patent Convention (EPC) provides that European patents shall be granted for […]
Battle for gene editing: the US Appeals Court rules on CRISPR patents
The Danish company SNIPR Biome, which researches and develops CRISPR-based microbial gene therapy, has obtained a favorable decision in defense of its patents. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has overturned the decision of the PTAB which had ruled in favor of Rockefeller University and canceled five of the company’s patents on […]
Cultural appropriation: are there legal mechanisms to stop this from an intellectual property standpoint?
Trying to provide effective, balanced and adequate protection of traditional cultural expressions and recognizing the intellectual property rights that local communities and indigenous peoples hold with regard to those expressions pose a real challenge in legal terms. It is common knowledge that using a trademark, a patent or a design of another business may cause […]
Architecture and Intellectual Property: Is it possible to protect a building?
Architecture encompasses a range of disciplines. Design, functionality, technique and, at times, good taste, come into play to achieve a result that comprises all of these in one: the building. But who does the “work” belong to? Can you protect a building? Imagine (for a joyful moment) that you are the architect of your favorite […]
Grace period in the patent system: a commercial advantage?
The fact that some jurisdictions provide a grace period during which, before the patent application is filed, the inventor can disclose the invention without any limitation with respect to the form or purpose of the disclosure and without this preventing the registration of the patent, as opposed to jurisdictions in the EPC system that do […]
The rise of the Unified Patent Court system in Europe
The entry into force of the Unified Patent Court is one step closer. European patent owners will soon have a new Court with jurisdiction over lawsuits involving patents. After a bumpy path since the enactment of European Regulation 1257/2012 of 17 December 2012 almost 10 years ago, implementing enhanced cooperation in the area of the […]