Banner Witcoff

Supreme Court Reaffirms Decades-Old Precedent for Patent Venue By Paul M. Rivard On May 22, 2017, the Supreme Court of the United States issued its opinion in TC Heartland LLC v. Kraft Foods Group Brands LLC, holding that “a domestic corporation ‘resides’ only in its State of incorporation for purposes of the patent venue statute.”…

Federal Circuit Avoids “Foundational Change in the Theory of the Statutory On-Sale Bar” By Surendra K. Ravula On May 1, 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit reached its ruling in Helsinn Healthcare S.A. v. Teva Pharmaceuticals USA Inc., No. 16-1284. As we wrote back in October 2016, this case is important…

Banner & Witcoff, Ltd., a national intellectual property law firm dedicated to the procurement, enforcement and litigation of intellectual property rights throughout the world, welcomes seven summer associates to the firm. The following law students will join Banner & Witcoff’s Chicago and Washington, D.C., offices this summer: Anthony Denis, Chicago, Indiana University Maurer School of…

Banner & Witcoff was recognized by Law360 and Bloomberg BNA for representing client Airlite Plastics Co. in its case against Phil-Insul Corp.,  at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. The Federal Circuit ruled in favor of Airlite on April 17. Click here to read the Law360 article. Click here to read the Bloomberg BNA article.…

Banner & Witcoff client Airlite Plastics Co. (Airlite) has prevailed on appeal before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. The Court affirmed the district court’s issuance of summary judgment of non-infringement based on collateral estoppel. The Court agreed with Airlite that rulings of claim construction and non-infringement issued against the patent holder in an…

Robert F. Altherr Jr., Ross A. Dannenberg, Scott M. Kelly, Frederic M. Meeker, Chunhsi Andy Mu, Joseph M. Potenza and Bradley C. Wright were named to the 2017 Washington, D.C. Super Lawyers and Rising Stars lists for their work in intellectual property law. The Super Lawyers lists represent the top 5 percent of attorneys in…

Richard S. Stockton was recognized in the International Trademark Association’s INTA Bulletin for his role in the annual Saul Lefkowitz Moot Court Competition at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington, D.C. Mr. Stockton served as this year’s chair of the Lefkowitz Committee. Seventy-one teams from 55 law schools across the country participated in the competition, and 10 teams…

Justices Set to Rule on Patent Venue By Paul M. Rivard On March 27, 2017, the Supreme Court heard arguments in TC Heartland LLC v. Kraft Foods Group Brands LLC. The specific question at issue is “[w]hether the patent venue statute, 28 U.S.C. § 1400(b), which provides that patent infringement actions ‘may be brought in…

On March 24, 2017, the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware entered final judgment in favor of Banner & Witcoff client, Unum Group. In MPHJ Technology Investments, LLC v. Unum Group, Case No. 1:14-cv-00006-SLR, the district court entered final judgment in favor of Unum Group after Banner & Witcoff client Lexmark International, Inc.…

Supreme Court Weighs in on Apparel Design Copyrightability in Star Athletica v. Varsity Brands By Darrell G. Mottley On March 22, 2017, the U.S. Supreme Court, in a 6-2 decision, affirmed the August 2015, ruling by the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in Star Athletica LLC v. Varsity Brands Inc., and…