USPTO News

February 23, 2024

USPTO’s Clarification on Human Ingenuity in the Age of Artificial Intelligence

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) recently provided crucial clarification on the patentability of inventions facilitated by artificial intelligence (AI). The announcement, made on February 12th, has significant implications for intellectual property (IP) law and innovation in the rapidly evolving realm of AI technology.

The USPTO’s guidance delineates the conditions under which patents will be granted for AI-assisted inventions, emphasizing the indispensable role of human ingenuity in the innovation process. According to the new directive, patents can encompass AI-assisted inventions “for which a natural person provided a significant contribution.” This pivotal criterion underscores the agency’s commitment to fostering innovation while maintaining a balance that avoids undue restrictions on future developments.

The emergence of artificial intelligence has precipitated novel challenges in IP law, prompting inquiries into the patentability of inventions produced with AI assistance. While U.S. courts have determined that AI systems themselves cannot be patent holders for fully AI-generated inventions, the issue of human involvement in AI-assisted inventions remained unresolved until now.

October 2, 2023

Teva Pharmaceutical’s Patent Infringement Verdict Against Eli Lilly Overturned

By Overhauser Law Offices, LLC

Massachusetts – Judge Allison Burroughs sided with Eli Lilly in a dispute with Teva Pharmaceuticals, overturning a $176.5 million jury verdict that had previously been awarded to Teva in a patent infringement suit regarding the two companies’ development of drugs with antibodies capable of treating headache disorders associated with calcitonin gene-related peptide (“CGRP”).

According to the original complaint, Teva’s drug (Ajovy) and Lilly’s drug (Emgality) were similar in the ways in which they work, and they were both approved by the FDA only 13 days apart in September 2018. However, Court documents show that Lilly contended that the two antibodies used in the drugs were different and, therefore, no infringement existed.

After a thorough examination of the case, Judge Burroughs agreed that the two drugs were distinct and that Teva’s patents were too expansive. Judge Burroughs stated in her ruling that, “Even viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the verdict, asserted claims are too broad.” She subsequently overturned the original jury verdict awarded to Teva writing in her ruling that “The Court does not reach this decision nor overturn a jury verdict lightly.”

March 2, 2023

USPTO Ushers in New Era with Introduction of Electronic Patent Grants

By Overhauser Law Offices, LLC

Beginning April 18, 2023, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is shifting towards issuing paper waste-reducing electronic patent grants (eGrants) to patent recipients—a new process that delivers the official copy of patent grants in an electronic format. We will provide a bound paper version as a ceremonial copy throughout a limited transition period, and then for a nominal fee thereafter.

September 2, 2022

200 Trademark Registrations Issued to Indiana Companies in August 2022

By Overhauser Law Offices, LLC

The U.S. Trademark Office issued the following 200 trademark registrations to persons and businesses in Indiana in August 2023 based on applications filed by Indiana trademark attorneys:

Registration No.		Word Mark
6835527		BUYIMMI
6827817		I’M NOT YOUR KITE BITCH
6827793		GATORADE, G, GIT
6827776		SOULFUL KITCHEN
6827602		GATORADE THIRST QUENCHER

August 2, 2022

159 Trademark Registrations Issued to Indiana Companies in July 2022

By Overhauser Law Offices, LLC

The U.S. Trademark Office issued the following 159 trademark registrations to persons and businesses in Indiana in July 2023 based on applications filed by Indiana trademark attorneys:

Registration No.		Word Mark
6797981		BETTER OFF SINGLE
6797949		THE SOCIAL JUSTICE GAME A GAME ABOUT CENTS & SENSIBILITY
6797815		DELL COVE
6791703		PLATFORM (A PRODUCTION COMPANY)
6782465		L L

July 14, 2022

267 Trademark Registrations Issued to Indiana Companies in June 2022

By Overhauser Law Offices, LLC

The U.S. Trademark Office issued the following 267 Trademark Registrations to persons and businesses in Indiana in June 2022 based on applications filed by Indiana Trademark Attorneys:

Reg. No Word Mark

6791703	PLATFORM (A PRODUCTION COMPANY)
6782465	L L
6782459	DESIGNSPINE
6783940	MIRES METHOD
6782252	I
6774926	NO PUP, NO PROBLEM
6768187	NCAA MARCH MADNESS
6760355	GET A MATED SET IN SECONDS

March 17, 2022

Patent Office Issues 168 Patents to Indiana Persons and Businesses

By Overhauser Law Offices, LLC

The U.S. Patent Office issued the following 168 patent registrations to persons and businesses in Indiana in January 2022, based on applications filed by Indiana Patent attorneys:

	Patent No.	Title
1	PP0033,910	Peony plant named `RTPIV 849-04`
2	PP0033,909	Peony plant named `RTPIV 849-01`
3	D0941,959	Faucet
4	D0941,780	Contact wafer
5	D0941,779	Electrical connector

January 28, 2022

USPTO Announces Deferred Subject Matter Eligibility Response (DSMER) pilot program

By Overhauser Law Offices, LLC

The United States Patent and Trademark office announced the Deferred Subject Matter Eligibility Response (DSMER) pilot program is designed to evaluate how deferred applicant responses to subject matter eligibility (SME) rejections affect examination efficiency and patent quality as compared to traditional compact prosecution practice. The program was initiated in response to a letter from Senators Thom Tillis and Tom Cotton.

Participation

Participation in this program is by invitation only. You may receive an invitation to participate if your application meets the criteria specified in the Federal Register notice announcing the program. These criteria include requirements that:

January 13, 2022

USPTO Implements New Sanctions Process for Improper Trademark Filings

By Overhauser Law Offices, LLC

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) has seen a historic surge of new trademark filings over the past year, along with an increase in suspicious submissions ranging from inaccurate to fraudulent.

On January 5, 2022 the USPTO posted a Federal Register Notice that the Commissioner for Trademarks has established an administrative process for investigating submissions filed with the USPTO in trademark matters that appear to violate the Trademark Rules of Practice, including the rules concerning signatures, certificates, and representation of others in trademark matter before the USPTO and/or the USPTO website’s Terms of Use; and imposing sanctions, as appropriate. Under this process, when a submission appears to violate the Trademark Rules of Practice or the USPTO website’s Terms of Use, the USPTO will issue administrative orders that may result in sanctions being imposed. Sanctions may include:

Striking submissions
Precluding parties from appearing before the USPTO
Terminating USPTO.gov accounts
Terminating proceedings

February 12, 2021

152 Trademark Registrations Issued to Indiana Companies in January 2021

By Overhauser Law Offices, LLC

The U.S. Trademark Office issued the following 152 trademark registrations to persons and businesses in Indiana in January 2021 based on applications filed by Indiana trademark attorneys:

	Reg. Number	Word Mark
1	6257028	SUNRISE DRUM
2	6256982	THE TUBE
3	6256782	E
4	6256766	SOFABSOAPS
5	6256731	ENPOM