Dr. Jonathan Schuchardt of Dilworth IP will be presenting an upcoming webinar focusing on the evolving obviousness standard of the USPTO for the Clear Law Institute. Not So Obvious: How the Federal Circuit Interprets 35 U.S.C. § 103 will be presented on Friday, October 6th from 1:00 to 2:15 PM (EDT). CLE credits are available for attending this webinar through the Clear Law Institute.

Dilworth IP subscribers save 35% off the registration; Click Here to receive the discount code and to register.

From the Clear Law Institute:

Obviousness becomes an issue in prosecuting almost every patent application and in surviving almost every challenge to a granted patent. Yet the U.S. Supreme Court last spoke on obviousness in KSR v. Teleflex, 550 U.S. 398 (2007). The Supreme Court’s infrequent rulings on patent law effectively make decisions from the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit the law of the land. Consequently, understanding Federal Circuit law is of paramount importance for patent practitioners.

Starting with Intelligent Bio-Systems v. Illumina Cambridge (decided May 2016), a rash of recent decisions evidences the Federal Circuit’s increased level of scrutiny of USPTO and district court decisions regarding the Patent Office’s need to provide reasoned explanations of the motivation to modify or combine reference teachings and, independently, the reasonable expectation of success of a skilled person. These cases provide potent ammunition for patent practitioners seeking to attack erroneous obviousness rejections and poorly articulated Board or court decisions.

In this webinar, you will learn about current themes in the Federal Circuit’s obviousness jurisprudence from the court’s 2015-2017 decisions. Among other obviousness subtopics, you’ll learn about:

  • The limited value of arguing “teaching away” and non-combinability of references
  • Limitations on “common sense” conclusions of obviousness
  • The role of unexpected results and other secondary considerations
  • The impact of KSR, especially as it relates to electromechanical arts

Dilworth IP subscribers save 35% off the registration; Click Here to receive the discount code and to register.

Dilworth IP is an intellectual property and business law firm providing legal services in the areas of patent and trademark prosecution, opinions and agreements in the chemical, biotech, pharmaceutical, medical device, material science, consumer products, electronics, software, and semiconductor industries. We’ve been in the lab. Whether your invention is a controlled-release pharmaceutical, a fuel cell, or a new circuit schematic, our attorneys will speak your language and listen well. We’ll quickly grasp nuances of your complex technology and capture the IP protection you deserve. To learn more about the firm, please visit dilworthip.com.