Banner Witcoff

Mr. Shifley explains in Law360 that the Supreme Court’s decision in Kimble v. Marvel Enterprises allows patent owners and licensees to confidently and without concern extend “in-term” royalties on patents into the post-expiration period. Please click here to read the article, “Attorneys React to Supreme Court Patent Royalties Case.”

SUPREME COURT AFFIRMS BRULOTTE, “GREEN-LIGHTS” COLLECTING PATENT ROYALTIES AFTER PATENTS EXPIRE By Charles W. Shifley In an important decision for patent licensing freedom, on June 22, 2015, the United States Supreme Court cleared the way for spreading patent royalty payments after the expiration of patents, in some simple and other complex ways. In Kimble v.…

Banner & Witcoff is recognized for patent prosecution in Illinois in the 2015 Intellectual Asset Management Patent 1000. Four attorneys were also recognized in this year’s edition: Robert S. Katz, design patents, national; Christopher J. Renk, litigation, Illinois; Ross A. Dannenberg, prosecution, Washington, D.C.; and John P. Iwanicki, prosecution, Massachusetts. Please click here to view the firm’s IAM Patent 1000…

USPTO ANNOUNCES EXPEDITED PATENT APPEAL PILOT PROGRAM By Paul M. Rivard Yesterday, the United States Patent and Trademark Office announced the “Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot” to provide a temporary basis for an applicant to have an ex parte appeal to the Patent Trial and Appeal Board accorded special status (advanced out of turn). To take…

On Saturday, May 30, Mr. Mottley discussed 3-D printing and developments in patent, design patent and copyright law on “Law Talk with Ethel Mitchell.” “Law Talk with Ethel Mitchell” is a weekly program that airs each Saturday on WOL 1450 AM in the Washington, D.C., area. According to its website, it is dedicated to inspiring people, particularly minorities, to use…

Mary Boney Denison, the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office Commissioner for Trademarks, visited Chicago on June 1 to discuss current developments and topics in trademark law and policy, as well as recent USPTO initiatives. Banner & Witcoff shareholder Richard S. Stockton played a key role in organizing the event, hosted by the Intellectual Property Law…

AKAMAI V. LIMELIGHT: FEDERAL CIRCUIT LIMITS DIRECT INFRINGEMENT OF METHOD CLAIMS By Jeffrey Chang On remand from the Supreme Court, the Federal Circuit held that Limelight did not directly infringe an asserted method claim under 35 U.S.C. § 271(a) because the “sweeping notions of common-law tort liability” do not apply to direct infringement, and Limelight…

Mr. Stockton discusses how the Hague System for the International Registration of Industrial Designs compares to the Patent Cooperation Treaty, why the United States will benefit from joining the treaty and what challenges practitioners may need to overcome in the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin. Please click here to read the article, “An international one-stop shop for design…

Mr. Stockton discusses the advantages and disadvantages of the Hague System for the International Registration of Industrial Designs in the Inside Counsel article, “Hague Weighed: Should I Change My Design Filing Strategy?” Please click here to read the article.

APPLE V. SAMSUNG: THE FEDERAL CIRCUIT CLARIFIES DESIGN PATENT PRINCIPLES LAW By Robert S. Katz and Darrell G. Mottley In a much anticipated opinion issued by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Apple v. Samsung on May 18, the design patent law with respect to remedies and the infringement test remains…