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This article examines <i>Hakim v. Cannon Avent Group</i>, which arguably expands the law on claim scope disclaimers. Thus, based on <i>Hakim</i>, when filing an RCE or continuation to broaden claims, care must be taken to ensure that any possible disavowal is unequivocally rescinded. Succinctly asking the examiner to reconsider prior art and noting that the current amendments broaden the claims, after a clear disavowal of claim scope is present, may not always be enough.
This article examines four recent Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit cases that shed light on the CAFC's current inequitable conduct jurisprudence and provide insight into how certain conduct may be interpreted by the court today.
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Epstein Becker & Green (New York): Steven Skwara and Robert Penezic join the health care and life sciences practice as partner and as senior counsel, respectively. Skwara was at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts, serving as associate general counsel and as director, fraud investigation and prevention. Penezic was at Broad and Cassel's Fort Lauderdale, FL, office. …
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Recent occurrences in this important area.
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Sacred cows make great steaks, as one wit quipped. The usual way of doing things is being stood on its head and, in the realm of medical malpractice claims at least, is being replaced in many cases by fresh approaches and claim resolution templates. Specifically, historical norms of adversarial claim approaches are being supplanted by 'apology programs,' which receive increasing interest and publicity.
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People injured by a drug or medical device often sue not only their medical caregivers and the hospitals where the devices were implanted, but also the drug or device's manufacturers. Smart move, but there may be other avenues for recovery that should be explored. There are many players in the process that brings a drug or device to the market, and it may prove valuable to question whether any of these had a role in causing the claimant's injury and whether they can be reached for recovery.
In addition to claims for medical negligence, medical professionals and the facilities for which they work may be exposed to claims for breach of contract based on a theory that patients are third-party beneficiaries of contracts between medical facilities and their physicians. Such actions may lead to liability for physicians who have no direct relationship with the patient at issue, but careful drafting of agreements between facilities such as nursing homes and hospitals and their physicians may prevent patients and their lawyers from bringing successful third-party beneficiary breach of contract claims.