Banner Witcoff

Happy Star Wars Day, and May the 4th be with you! Banner Witcoff’s Brian Emfinger is celebrating by exploring the patent portfolio of Lucasfilm, Ltd., which holds a number of design and utility patents going back to the early 1980s. Lucasfilm’s first patent—a design patent—was for a toy figurine of Boba Fett, who made his…

Banner Witcoff is pleased to share that Binal Patel is among the honorees who will receive the 2023 Vanguard Award from the Chicago Bar on May 2. According to its website, The Vanguard Award honors individuals and institutions who have made the law and legal profession more accessible to and reflective of the community at…

Eleven Banner Witcoff attorneys have been selected for inclusion on the 2023 Washington, D.C. Super Lawyers and Rising Stars lists for their work in intellectual property law. 2023 Washington, D.C. Super Lawyers Robert F. Altherr John R. Hutchins Robert S. Katz Fred M. Meeker Darrell G. Mottley Bradley C. Wright 2023 Washington, D.C. Rising Stars…

Starting in 2023, Robert Katz is now serving in two leadership roles for FIPCI: President of the US Chapter of FICPI and Vice President of the FICPI CET Committee.  Commenting on his appointment to president of the section, Rob said, “FICPI represents a critical constituency within the international IP industry. Since 1906, the organization has…

By Jordan Bodner and Scott Burow In this installment of the PTAB Highlights, Banner Witcoff examines recent decisions at the PTAB featuring: references previously considered, enablement of amended claims, ownership challenge estoppel, discretionary denial and more! Reference not meaningfully addressed during prosecution. ironSource Ltd. v. Digital Turbine, Inc., PGR2022-00053, Paper 10 (March 17, 2023) (Ahmed,…

Managing IP ranked Banner Witcoff’s trademark practice in its 2023 edition of “IP Stars,” a guide to the world’s top intellectual property firms. IP Stars “highly recommended” the firm’s trademark practice in Illinois, the guide’s highest recognition. Banner Witcoff is one of only seven firms to be “highly recommended” in the category, and is placed…

By Shawn M. Buchanan and Anthony Denis In this installment of the PTAB Highlights, Banner Witcoff examines recent decisions at the PTAB featuring: evidentiary challenges and best practices, the Board’s treatment of late filings, the importance of clarity when combining analyses for independent and dependent claims, and more! Whodunnit doesn’t matter. Medtronic Vascular, Inc. et al.…

By Simon Lasker and Craig Kronenthal In this installment of the PTAB Highlights, Banner Witcoff examines recent decisions at the PTAB featuring: several Director review decisions, PTAB jurisdiction when a claim is invalidated in district court, procedures for obtaining adverse judgment, and more! Swaddling suit patent helps PTO Director put issue of first impression to…

Banner Witcoff was recognized in four categories for Managing IP’s annual MIP Americas Awards. Based on the firm’s successes in Patent Prosecution and Trademark Prosecution, the firm received nominations for: Patent Prosecution Firm of the Year (Northeast Region) Trademark Prosecution Firm of the Year (Midwest Region) Banner Witcoff attorneys Frederic Meeker and Robert Katz also…