Banner Witcoff

Law360 covered a recent ruling from the federal district court in Washington, D.C., dismissing a complaint in which a former employee of one of Banner Witcoff’s clients sought $63 million for the alleged infringement of copyrighted software. As reported in the June 4 article, the court dismissed Neil Zaccari’s complaint against Apprio, Inc. after finding…

Retired shareholder Sheldon W. Witcoff has been honored with the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award. Marquis Who’s Who, a publisher of biographical profiles, noted the recognition in a June 4 announcement detailing Sheldon’s distinguished career. Sheldon retired in 2010 after practicing in the firm’s Chicago office for more than 40 years. One of the…

Crain’s Chicago Business recognized Banner Witcoff attorneys Charles Miller and Binal Patel as 2019 Notable Gen X Leaders in Law. The list includes “some of the top practitioners in town handling intellectual property, corporate restructuring and class-action defense cases,” according to Crain’s, which penned profiles about the attorneys in a special section. In Charles’ profile,…

Banner Witcoff’s patent and trademark practices are recognized in the 2019 U.S. edition of The Legal 500, a guide of leading law firms and practitioners across the country. The Legal 500 also highlighted several firm attorneys for their work in these areas. The guide lists Banner Witcoff as a top firm in the “Patents: Prosecution”…

When is Simply Having a Good Idea Insufficient? Nuvo Pharmaceuticals v. Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Inc. By Sarah A. Kagan, Ph.D. The written description requirement of 35 U.S.C. § 112 is generally considered a distinct criterion of patentability, separate from the enablement requirement.  Less than a decade ago, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal…

For a May 15 article, Law360 sought out Banner Witcoff attorney Craig W. Kronenthal for commentary on discovery practice before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB). The article notes that historically, it has been difficult for parties to obtain additional documents during inter parties review. PTAB, according to the article, has explained that limited…

Endo Pharm. Inc. v. Actavis LLS By Sarah A. Kagan Patent law often makes subtle distinctions.  One of these distinctions involves the power of words.  In some situations, merely stating the words to describe an invention is sufficient and in others, it is not.  Such a distinction is involved in the recent decision of the…

Managing Intellectual Property (MIP) has recognized Banner Witcoff and 17 of its attorneys in the 2019 edition of “IP Stars,” a guide to the world’s top intellectual property firms and practitioners. Nationally, the firm is ranked in Tier 3 for its patent prosecution work and as a notable firm in the patent contentious practice area.…

Banner Witcoff attorney Charles W. Shifley has been elected President of the Intellectual Property Law Association of Chicago (IPLAC). He began his one-year term on May 7 at an annual meeting of IPLAC, the country’s oldest bar association devoted exclusively to intellectual property matters. The association is made up of more than 1,000 members with…

Law360 quoted Banner Witcoff attorney Craig W. Kronenthal in a May 9 article examining the recent string of decisions that the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) has designated as precedential. The article recaps more than a handful of decisions that the PTAB has designated as precedential since April, as well as two designated as…