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Interpreting Patent Claims: Patent Drafters Say What They Mean, But Do They Mean What They Say?
What exactly does it mean to interpret claims “in light” of the specification? Do the descriptions and examples in a patent specification affect the interpretation of the patent's claims where there is no express statement that a specialized definition is being given to claim terms? Absent a specific glossary section, is it even necessary to read the specification or should the public be free to read and interpret the claims in a vacuum? Within 4 days, two separate panels of the Federal Circuit delivered seemingly conflicting answers to these questions, highlighting a growing rift regarding the significance of the specification and prosecution history to claim interpretation.
Seemingly relegating the patent specification to second-class status, the panel in Housey Pharm., Inc. v. Astrazeneca UK Ltd., 364 F.3d 1348 (Fed. Cir. 2004), began its analysis by stating that there is a “heavy presumption” that the language in a claim “carries its ordinary and customary meaning.” Based on the court's approach, this ordinary definition can be determined by looking in dictionaries. This panel stated that in order to overcome this “heavy presumption” that the dictionary definition is the controlling interpretation, the intrinsic evidence would have to “clearly disavow” the ordinary meaning. As the dissent put it, the majority categorized intrinsic evidence as an “also-ran” in claim construction.
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Why So Many Great Lawyers Stink at Business Development and What Law Firms Are Doing About It
Why is it that those who are best skilled at advocating for others are ill-equipped at advocating for their own skills and what to do about it?
Bankruptcy Sales: Finding a Diamond In the Rough
There is no efficient market for the sale of bankruptcy assets. Inefficient markets yield a transactional drag, potentially dampening the ability of debtors and trustees to maximize value for creditors. This article identifies ways in which investors may more easily discover bankruptcy asset sales.
The DOJ's Corporate Enforcement Policy: One Year Later
The DOJ's Criminal Division issued three declinations since the issuance of the revised CEP a year ago. Review of these cases gives insight into DOJ's implementation of the new policy in practice.
A Lawyer's System for Active Reading
Active reading comprises many daily tasks lawyers engage in, including highlighting, annotating, note taking, comparing and searching texts. It demands more than flipping or turning pages.
Risks of “Baseball Arbitration” in Resolving Real Estate Disputes
“Baseball arbitration” refers to the process used in Major League Baseball in which if an eligible player's representative and the club ownership cannot reach a compensation agreement through negotiation, each party enters a final submission and during a formal hearing each side — player and management — presents its case and then the designated panel of arbitrators chooses one of the salary bids with no other result being allowed. This method has become increasingly popular even beyond the sport of baseball.