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Writing, Prosecuting and Issuing Commercially Valuable Patents
Intellectual property, be it in the form of trademarks, copyrights, or patents, represents a significant investment by the owner. The intellectual property owner, whether a large, multinational corporation or a sole inventor, makes the investment for a single purpose ' to increase the value of its business. When a patent practitioner invests a client's resources and returns no significant value, that practitioner has failed to meet the client's expectations. This article addresses steps that a savvy practitioner can take to hedge the likely outcome of the patent procurement process.
What Is Commercial Value?
In order to determine if a practitioner is delivering commercial value to a client, it is first necessary to define what constitutes commercial value. The basic definition is not complicated: Commercial value is an increase in the value of the client's business. Commercial value can be recognized in different ways. With respect to patents, value is typically recognized by either: 1) the ability to defend an exclusive position within a market, or 2) the ability to recognize value from licensing to a competitor. The attentive reader will recognize that both definitions of commercial value include one common prerequisite: The patent must have value to the owner's competitors in the industry. If no one else is interested in a patent, it is very unlikely that it will have commercial value to the owner.
Major Differences In UK, U.S. Copyright Laws
This article highlights how copyright law in the United Kingdom differs from U.S. copyright law, and points out differences that may be crucial to entertainment and media businesses familiar with U.S law that are interested in operating in the United Kingdom or under UK law. The article also briefly addresses contrasts in UK and U.S. trademark law.
The Article 8 Opt In
The Article 8 opt-in election adds an additional layer of complexity to the already labyrinthine rules governing perfection of security interests under the UCC. A lender that is unaware of the nuances created by the opt in (may find its security interest vulnerable to being primed by another party that has taken steps to perfect in a superior manner under the circumstances.
Strategy vs. Tactics: Two Sides of a Difficult Coin
With each successive large-scale cyber attack, it is slowly becoming clear that ransomware attacks are targeting the critical infrastructure of the most powerful country on the planet. Understanding the strategy, and tactics of our opponents, as well as the strategy and the tactics we implement as a response are vital to victory.
Legal Possession: What Does It Mean?
Possession of real property is a matter of physical fact. Having the right or legal entitlement to possession is not "possession," possession is "the fact of having or holding property in one's power." That power means having physical dominion and control over the property.
The Stranger to the Deed Rule
In 1987, a unanimous Court of Appeals reaffirmed the vitality of the "stranger to the deed" rule, which holds that if a grantor executes a deed to a grantee purporting to create an easement in a third party, the easement is invalid. Daniello v. Wagner, decided by the Second Department on November 29th, makes it clear that not all grantors (or their lawyers) have received the Court of Appeals' message, suggesting that the rule needs re-examination.