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Assessing the Obviousness of Inventions
Organizations should evaluate their innovation processes in light of the evolving meaning of obviousness. In KSR Int'l Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 127 S.Ct. 1727 (April 30, 2007), the Supreme Court changed the obviousness standard. The new standard weakens patents and makes obtaining patent protection more challenging. Organizations can anticipate the need for rebuttal evidence and proactively capture evidence of unpredictability as innovations progress from concept to commercialization. To show non-obviousness, such evidence, or the lack thereof, can be used to decide whether to apply for a patent or maintain the potentially patentable technology as a trade secret, and, also, whether to continue development efforts or redirect investments to alternative ideas. Organizations that use an innovation process to capture evidence of unpredictability can preserve the strongest evidence of non-obviousness and, as a result, increase certainty in business decisions and, ultimately, profits.
Obviousness Analysis
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.
The DOJ's New Parameters for Evaluating Corporate Compliance Programs
The parameters set forth in the DOJ's memorandum have implications not only for the government's evaluation of compliance programs in the context of criminal charging decisions, but also for how defense counsel structure their conference-room advocacy seeking declinations or lesser sanctions in both criminal and civil investigations.
Use of Deferred Prosecution Agreements In White Collar Investigations
This article discusses the practical and policy reasons for the use of DPAs and NPAs in white-collar criminal investigations, and considers the NDAA's new reporting provision and its relationship with other efforts to enhance transparency in DOJ decision-making.
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.
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.