Phillip Wolfe

Federal Circuit: AI Cannot Be a Named ‘Inventor’ Under the Patent Act

By Phillip Wolfe on August 9, 2022 Posted in Patent

On August 5, 2022, the Federal Circuit in Thaler v. Vidal ruled that an artificial intelligence (AI) system cannot be listed as a named inventor on a patent application, affirming the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and Eastern District of Virginia rulings. The Federal Circuit concluded that the Patent Act requires an “inventor,” … Continue Reading

World IP Day – A Day To Celebrate Youth-Led Creativity

By Phillip Wolfe on April 26, 2022 Posted in Intellectual Property

World Intellectual Property Day is again upon us. While last year’s theme focused on IP for small businesses, the focus this year is on celebrating youth-led innovation and creativity. With the increased consumption of media and the ease of creating and publishing content on various social media platforms, the time couldn’t be better for such … Continue Reading

“Teaching Away” – A Change To This Historically Inconsistent Doctrine

By Phillip Wolfe on August 6, 2021 Posted in Patent

Teaching away is an important concept when considering the obviousness of a patent claim. The Federal Circuit’s recent decision in Chemours v. Daikin[1] makes it easier to find that a reference teaches away from an invention, potentially increasing the difficulty of invalidating a patent claim for being obvious. There, the Circuit reversed the Patent Trial … Continue Reading

Today Is World IP Day – Make Your IP Work for You

By Phillip Wolfe on April 25, 2021 Posted in Intellectual Property

April 26th is World Intellectual Property Day, focusing this year on how small businesses can use intellectual property (IP) rights to build a stronger, more competitive and resilient business. To those unfamiliar with IP and its nuances, IP can be thrown around as a buzzword without a true understanding of what it is or how … Continue Reading

Looking for Clarification on Means-Plus-Function Claiming? Here Are 4 Things You Should Know

By Phillip Wolfe on March 3, 2021 Posted in Software

In Rain Computing, Inc. v. Samsung Elecs. Co., No. 2020-1646 (Fed. Cir. Mar. 2, 2021), the Federal Circuit reversed a judgment of non-invalidity and in doing so provided clarity to its post-Williamson (792 F.3d 1339 (Fed. Cir. 2015)) means-plus-function case law and the required disclosure of structure to avoid an indefiniteness issue. This guidance is … Continue Reading

CAFC: Patents Enjoy a Presumption of Subject Matter Eligibility

By Phillip Wolfe and Michael Stein on July 1, 2019 Posted in Patent

In Cellspin Soft, Inc. v. Fitbit, Inc.,[1] the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) rendered an important decision declaring that the presumption of validity under § 282 includes the presumption that claims are patent eligible under § 101. Claimed Invention and Procedural Posture Cellspin sued several companies for infringing various claims of four … Continue Reading