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Exploring the Law of Embodiments After Phillips
The decision by the Federal Circuit in Phillips v. AWH Corp., 415 F.3d 1303 (Fed. Cir. 2005) (en banc) in July 2005 reaffirmed and amplified many of the court's prior decisions addressing various aspects of patent claim construction. In particular, it emphasized the critical role of the specification in determining what the claim means and stated that the specification 'is the single best guide to the meaning of a disputed term.' While the specification provides a number of sign posts or guides to interpreting a claim, one of the most important considerations is whether and how the patentee may have limited the invention to certain embodiments or may have distinguished the invention from prior inventions. It is important, therefore, for both patent prosecutors and litigators to understand how the Federal Circuit has approached the issue of limiting claims in a post-Phillips world based on the embodiments disclosed in the specification.
In general, since Phillips the Federal Circuit has been willing to limit the claim terms of a patent: 1) when the specification referred to the proposed limitation as 'the present invention,' 2) when the specification defined 'the focus of the invention' and the claim required the proposed limitation in order to fit into the 'focus of the invention'; or 3) when the specification only disclosed certain embodiments and failed to account for alternative embodiments. In contrast, the Federal Circuit has refused to limit a claim term to the embodiments disclosed in the specification when the specification envisioned alternative embodiments not containing the proposed limitation. Accordingly, it is critical for patent prosecutors to include a specification in the application that contains, if at all possible, alternative embodiments or indicates that the disclosed embodiment is 'merely a preferred embodiment of the claimed invention.'
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.
Beach Boys Songs Written Decades Ago Triggered Current Quarrel With Lawyers
There's current litigation in the ongoing Beach Boys litigation saga. A lawsuit filed in 2019 against Nevada residents Mike Love and his wife Jacquelyne in the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada that alleges inaccurate payment by the Loves under the retainer agreement and seeks $84.5 million in damages.
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.
Transfer Tax Implications on Real Property Leases
The real property transfer tax does not apply to all leases, and understanding the tax rules of the applicable jurisdiction can allow parties to plan ahead to avoid unnecessary tax liability.
When Is a Repair Structural or Nonstructural Under a Commercial Lease?
A common question that commercial landlords and tenants face is which of them is responsible for a repair to the subject premises. These disputes often center on whether the repair is "structural" or "nonstructural."