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Ex Parte Kubin: Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences Applies 'Obvious to Try' in Post-KSR Biotechnology Appeal
For the past 15 years, the PTO has been issuing patents based on its interpretation of Federal Circuit precedent that a previously unknown DNA sequence that encodes a known polypeptide is non-obvious. This precedent, established by the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in In re Bell, 991 F.2d 781, 26 U.S.P.Q.2d 1529 (Fed. Cir. 1993), and later reaffirmed in In re Deuel, 51 F.3d 1552, 34 U.S.P.Q.2d 1210 (Fed. Cir. 1995), is now being challenged by the Patent Office Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences (the “Board”). In Ex Parte Kubin, 2007 WL 2070495 (B.P.A.I. May 31, 2007), the Board determined that a DNA sequence encoding a functionally characterized but un-isolated receptor protein was “the product not of innovation but of ordinary skill and common sense,” leading it to conclude that the DNA sequence was obvious under 35 U.S.C. '103(a) and therefore not patentable.
The Bell and Deuel Decisions
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.
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.
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.