On June 15, 2022, Boston Scientific entered into a definitive agreement to purchase a majority stake in M.I.Tech Co., Ltd, a publicly traded Korean medical device company in the field of endoscopic and urological procedures. The agreement includes a purchase price of approximately $230 million. According to the announcement, M.I.Tech is the creator of the HANAROSTENT® technology, a family of conformable, non-vascular, self-expanding metal stents. Non-vascular stents can be used in gastrointestinal applications and in airways to clear obstructions or constrictions in areas such as the biliary tree, pancreatic duct, esophagus, colon, and duodenum.
MEENAXI ENTERPRISE, INC. v. THE COCA-COLA COMPANY
Before Dyk, Reyna, and Stoll. Appeal from the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board.
Summary: To maintain a statutory cause of action under the Lanham Act for activities solely conducted outside the United States, the claimant must provide concrete evidence of reputational injury or lost sales.
STATIC MEDIA LLC v. LEADER ACCESSORIES LLC
Before Dyk, Reyna, and Taranto. Appeal from the Western District of Wisconsin.
Summary: It was an abuse of discretion to hold a party in contempt for an alleged protective order violation resulting from a third person’s use of confidential information in a co-pending litigation when the third person (1) agreed to be bound by the order, (2) was reminded of its obligations under the order, and (3) the disclosure was made pursuant to a joint defense agreement.
CENTRIPETAL NETWORKS, INC. v. CISCO SYSTEMS, INC.
Before Dyk, Taranto, and Cunningham. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.
Summary: Placing stock in a blind trust does not divest a judge of that stock for purposes of the judicial ethics statutes.
On June 16, 2022, the World Trade Organization (WTO) agreed to a partial waiver of intellectual property rights related to COVID-19 vaccines. The agreement came on the heels of an all-night negotiating session. The agreement followed years of proposals and negotiations among the WTO members.
NOVARTIS PHARMACEUTICALS CORP. V. HEC PHARM CO., LTD.
Before Moore, Hughes, and Linn (dissenting). Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Delaware.
Summary: Silence regarding the presence or absence of a limitation in a patent specification was not sufficient to provide written description support for a negative claim limitation.
Introduction
The Mayo/Alice subject-matter eligibility test has been a controversial topic since its creation. Many have argued that it leaves innovators, particularly in the software field, with uncertainty as to whether their advances are patentable. In American Axle & Manufacturing, Inc. v. Neapco Holdings LLC, the Federal Circuit extended this uncertainty into the mechanical field.
UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS v. L’ORÉAL S.A.
Before Prost, Mayer, and Taranto. Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Delaware.
Summary: In claims of two patents regarding skin enhancement, the recited concentration of a compound that is applied to sub-topical dermal cells is measured at the point the compound is applied topically to the skin.
TIGER LILY VENTURES LTD. v. BARCLAYS CAPITAL INC.
Before Lourie, Bryson, and Prost. Appeal from the United States Patent and Trademark Office, Trademark Trial and Appeal Board.
Summary: A trademark associated with a bankrupt company was not abandoned when the trademark continued to be used during bankruptcy and was the subject of active licenses.
Becton, Dickinson and Company (BD) has partnered with Mayo Clinic to gain access to de-identified patient data from Mayo Clinic Platform_Discover, as reported by a press release dated June 13, 2022. The platform includes data sets from 10 million patients.
