PTAB to Rehear Ex Parte Baurin: Revisiting the Interplay of Obviousness-Type Double Patenting and Patent Term Adjustment After Cellect and Allergan
Daniel M. Mittelstein & Michael L. Fuller
The PTO Director’s sua sponte rehearing of Ex parte Baurin raises questions regarding the scope of Allergan v. MSN, Examiners’ role in obviousness-type double patenting rejections, and the underlying policy justifications for these types of rejections.
USPTO Director to Consider U.S. Manufacturing and Small Business Status When Instituting or Denying IPR and PGR Petitions
Effective immediately, the USPTO will consider whether a patent challenger’s accused products or a patent owner’s products are manufactured in the United States as additional factors in the discretionary denial process for inter partes and post-grant reviews.
Patent challengers and patent owners should address in discretionary denial briefing whether they manufacture products in the United States and how institution or denial of America Invents Act (AIA) proceedings would impact domestic manufacturing. Patent challengers with fewer than 500 employees should also self-identify as small businesses when opposing discretionary denial.
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