Banner Witcoff

Michael J. Harris is a new “Global Fellow” in the Federal Circuit Bar Association. The FCBA, with support from the German Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property, invites Mr. Harris and other emerging legal leaders to attend an intensive learning program taught by influential judges and practitioners from the United States and Germany. The…

DMCA TAKEDOWNS REQUIRE CONSIDERATION OF FAIR USE By Steve S. Chang The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has held that copyright holders must at least consider fair use before issuing a takedown notice under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). The decision, in Lenz v. Universal Music Corp. et al.1, is the…

USPTO ISSUES SECOND ROUND OF AIA RULE CHANGES By Camille Sauer On August 19, 2015, the United States Patent and Trademark Office announced a new round of proposed changes to practice before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, including inter partes review, post-grant review, the transitional program for covered business method patents, and derivation proceedings (the AIA proceedings).…

Azuka C. Dike discusses how companies can extract real value and drive economic performance from their IP portfolios in the September 2015 issue of Intellectual Property Magazine.Please click here to read the article (subscription required).

Banner & Witcoff client LMK Technologies LLC’s recent win against BLD Services LLC at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board is featured in the Law360 article, “PTAB Says Rehashed Args. Sink Pipe Rehab Patent Reviews.” In the article, Christopher L. McKee, who represents LMK, says “this is a well-deserved victory for LMK,” and that the PTAB “properly exercised its discretion…

Michael S. Cuviello discusses the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s proposed pilot program that would require one group of judges to decide whether to institute an inter partes review and another group of judges to determine the patent’s validity with World Intellectual Property Review. Please click here to read the article, “USPTO calls for feedback on PTAB judge pilot programme.”

On August 24, 2015, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s Patent Trial and Appeal Board ruled in favor of firm client LMK Technologies, LLC, declining institution of inter partes reviews on two petitions filed by BLD Services, LLC. The decisions issued in IPR2015-00723 (Paper 7) and IPR2015-00721 (Paper 9). The LMK patents at issue pertain to trenchless…

On August 22, 2015, Banner & Witcoff clients Microsoft Corp. and NIKE Inc. were recognized for their design excellence at the Industrial Designers Society of America’s 2015 International Design Excellence Awards Gala in Seattle. Microsoft received the Silver Award for its Microsoft Start Experience Windows 10 in the Digital Design category. NIKE was honored with…

The Chicago Daily Law Bulletin highlights Helen Hill Minsker’s participation in “Trademark Law and Its Challenges 2015,” the sixth annual symposium presented by The McCarthy Institute for Intellectual Property and Technology Law, the International Trademark Association and Microsoft Corp., on Sept. 26, 2015, in San Francisco. The symposium brings together brand owners, trademark attorneys, and public policymakers…

The July 2015 edition of Managing Intellectual Property features the busiest companies and law firms at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board so far this year. According to the article, “Data: PTAB Petitioners, Patent Owners and Law Firms in the First Half of 2015,” MIP used Docket Navigator to analyze PTAB petitions filed in the first half of 2015…