Recent News
September 3, 2010
USPTO Issues New Obviousness Guidelines - The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has released new guidelines for its patent examiners in light of several precedential court rulings that have been issued since KSR Int'l Co. v. Teleflex Inc.
August 27, 2010
Hoekel Named "Up & Coming Lawyer" - Senniger Powers congratulates attorney Jennifer Hoekel, who was named an "Up & Coming Lawyer" by Missouri Lawyers Weekly.
August 24, 2010
CAFC Rules on Golden Hour - The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit recently decided Golden Hour Data systems v. emsCharts, Inc.
August 12, 2010
Half of Senniger Partners Selected to Best Lawyers - Senniger Powers congratulates partners Jordan Cherrick, Robert Evans, Paul Fleischut, Michael Godar, David Harlan, Kurt James, Kathleen Petrillo, and John Roedel, all of whom have been selected for inclusion in the 2011 edition of The Best Lawyers in America®.
August 10, 2010
Wyers v. Master Lock: Federal Circuit Determines Obviousness as a Matter of Common Sense - Though obviousness is a mixed question of law and fact, expert factual testimony may not be necessary in circumstances where “common sense” is sufficient.
July 27, 2010
USPTO Issues Bilski Guidelines - The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has released Interim Guidance for Determining Subject Matter Eligibility for Process Claims in View of Bilski v. Kappos.
July 22, 2010
Gillette Published in St. Louis Lawyer - Senniger Powers attorney Sara Weilert Gillette's article, "Continuing Legal Education: Not Just for June," appears in the July 2010 issue of St. Louis Lawyer.
July 21, 2010
In Myriad, Court Rules Gene Patents Are Invalid - Senniger Powers attorney Tim McBride's analysis of Assoc. for Molecular Pathology (ACLU) v. USPTO (Myriad Genetics), appears in the article "Court Rules Gene Patents Invalid," published in the July 2010, Volume 16, No. 4 issue of IVD Technology.
July 20, 2010
IPEC Releases Plan on IP Enforcement - USPTO spending of $2.3 billion for 2011 was recently approved by the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice and Science.
July 8, 2010
IPEC Releases Plan on IP Enforcement - On 6/22/2010 the Office of the U.S. Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator (IPEC) released the 2010 Joint Strategic Plan on Intellectual Property Enforcement.
June 28, 2010
Judge Grants Google Motion in Viacom Suit - Google successfully defended itself in a $1 billion copyright infringement lawsuit by Viacom when a federal judge ruled that Google was protected by "safe harbor" provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).
June 28, 2010
Bob Bain, Chair of the Firm's Electrical, Computer Systems and Software Patent Practice Group, Comments on Bilski v. Kappos - The Supreme Court finally handed down its highly anticipated ― and ultimately anti-climactic ― decision in Bilski v. Kappos.
June 23, 2010
Client Service Is Key, Says Hoekel - Adding value to service, providing effective project management, operating within budget constraints, and being responsive are four key ways for attorneys to serve current clients to the best of their abilities.
June 18, 2010
Senniger Powers Continues Its Support of Kingdom House - During a recent visit to Kingdom House, Missouri Governor Jay Nixon announced that the organization will receive almost $200,000 in incentives to help fund its programs for at-risk youth.
June 16, 2010
Pequignot v. Solo Cup Co.: Appeals Court Issues Major "False Marking" Decision - In Pequignot v. Solo Cup Co., decided on June 10, 2010, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed the grant of summary judgment of no liability by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, which had ruled that Solo Cup lacked the requisite intent to deceive the public when it falsely marked some of its products as protected by U.S. patents.
June 8, 2010
Judgment Overturned in Leviton Mfg. Co. v. Universal Security Instruments - On May 28, 2010, the Federal Circuit vacated a million dollar judgment in Leviton Mfg. Co. v. Universal Security Instruments after finding that material issues of fact precluded summary judgment on inequitable conduct.
June 3, 2010
Paul Fleischut on Tactics for Cost-Effective Trademarks - A recent article by Steve Anderson, "Tactics For Cost-Effective Trademarks," appeared this spring in IPLaw360 and is a good reminder of the following ways to improve your trademark bang per buck.
May 24, 2010
Robert Bain Quoted on Importance of Early Patents - Bob Bain, chief operating officer of Senniger Powers and chair of the electrical and computer practice group, is quoted in the article "Early Patents Can Boost Funding for Entrepreneurs," appearing in the May 21, 2010 edition of the St. Louis Business Journal.
May 13, 2010
John Roedel Participates in USPTO Roundtable - John Roedel of Senniger Powers was a participant in a Roundtable discussion of patent quality held in Los Angeles on Monday, May 10, under the sponsorship of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
May 12, 2010
USTR Releases Special 301 Report on IP Rights - The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) recently released the 2010 Special 301 Report.
April 30, 2010
Senniger Powers Attorney Janet Hendrickson Explains Recent Developments in Therasense Inc. (now Abbott) v. Becton, Dickinson and Co. (Fed. Cir. 2010) - On March 26, 2010, the Federal Circuit issued an order vacating the January 25, 2010 panel decision, granting Abbott’s request for rehearing en banc, and requesting briefing on six issues.
April 29, 2010
John Roedel to Participate in USPTO Roundtable - The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has invited Senniger Powers attorney John Roedel to attend a roundtable on ways to enhance the quality of the patent process, particularly on the search, examination, application and methods to measure patent quality.
April 23, 2010
Twitter Donates Archive to Library of Congress - Twitter, a social networking site that lets users send and read messages (called "tweets") of up to 140 characters, is donating it's entire public archive to the Library of Congress (LOC).
April 12, 2010
Bob Bain Comments on Patent Backlog - Senniger Powers attorney Bob Bain is quoted in the April 9, 2010 Nashville Business Journal article "Patent Backlog Forces Companies to Innovate, Then Wait."
April 8, 2010
USPTO Proposes Extension to Provisional Patent Application Period - The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is asking for public comments on a proposed change to extend the 12-month provisional application period by another 12-months through the missing parts practice in nonprovisional applications.
March 31, 2010
ACLU Wins First Clash Against Myriad's Gene Patents - In Assoc. for Molecular Pathology (ACLU) v. USPTO (Myriad Genetics), case number 1:09-cv-04515 (S.D.N.Y. Mar. 29, 2010), the District Court for the Southern District of New York ruled that Myriad's gene composition and method claims are unpatentable subject matter.
March 16, 2010
i4i v. Microsoft - Largest Jury Verdict Ever Affirmed by Federal Circuit - Senniger Powers attorney Sara Weilert Gillette discusses updated developments in i4i v. Microsoft.Act.
March 10, 2010
Bipartisan Leaders of the Senate Judiciary Committee Renew Efforts to Advance Patent Reform - On March 4, 2010, leaders of the Senate Judiciary Committee announced that they reached an agreement on amendments to the 2009 Patent Reform Act.
March 2, 2010
DOJ Forms IP Task Force - The Department of Justice (DOJ) has formed a new Task Force on Intellectual Property to battle the increasing number of domestic and international intellectual property (IP) crimes.
March 2, 2010
Tentative Patent Reform Agreement Reached - Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), a longtime proponent of patent reform legislation, has announced that Committee leaders have reached a tentative agreement to reform the U.S. patent system.
February 25, 2010
Google Books Decision Delayed - After a five-hour hearing on February 18, Judge Denny Chin has delayed ruling on the proposed Google Books settlement.
February 16, 2010
What Is Google Books? Senniger Powers Explains - The Google Books Library Project is a plan to create a massive repository of freely available digital books.
February 11, 2010
Inventor of the Year Banquet Held - The 34th Inventor of the Year Awards Banquet was held on February 9, 2010 in Forest Park.
February 5, 2010
Obama Proposes Increased USPTO Budget - President Barack Obama's proposed 2011 fiscal year budget includes $2.322 billion for the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
February 2, 2010
Michael Godar and John Roedel Named Among "Best Lawyers" - Senniger Powers congratulates attorneys Michael Godar and John Roedel, who were among the intellectual property attorneys included in St. Louis Magazine's annual list of "Best Lawyers."
January 28, 2010
i4i v. Microsoft - Largest Jury Verdict Ever Affirmed by Federal Circuit - Senniger Powers attorney Sara Weilert Gillette discusses i4i v. Microsoft in the following article. Ms. Gillette's practice is concentrated in intellectual property litigation.
January 28, 2010
Judge Reduces Penalty In File-Sharing Case - Jammie Thomas-Rasset, who in July 2009 was ordered to pay $1.92 million in damages for illegally downloading and distributing 24 songs, has had her penalty reduced to $54,000, or $2,250 per infringed recording.
January 20, 2010
Federal Circuit Rules Against USPTO in Wyeth v. Kappos - In a January 7, 2010 decision, the Federal Circuit overturned the USPTO's interpretation of how to adjust patent terms to compensate for delays by the USPTO.
January 20, 2010
Haitian Relief Effort Supported - On January 12, a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck Haiti near the capital of Port-au-Prince, resulting in massive destruction and loss of life.
January 15, 2010
Fleischut Addresses Imputed Disqualification Rules in "Eye on Ethics" - Senniger Powers attorney Paul Fleischut's article "Eye on Ethics: Ancient Representation Imputes Disqualification on the Unsuspecting," appears in the January 2010 issue of St. Louis Lawyer.
January 13, 2010
Andrew Wegman Promoted to Partner - Senniger Powers is pleased to announce that Andrew Wegman became a partner in the firm effective January 1, 2010.
January 12, 2010
Columbia Tribune Interviews Fleischut on North Face Row - Attorney Paul Fleischut tells the Columbia Tribune in an article published today that there is a middle ground in the North Face v. South Butt case and he expects the parties will settle their differences well before any final judgment.
January 4, 2010
Patent Mismarking - "Patent Marking" refers to the notice "US Pat. No. 7,654,321" and "PATENTED" and the like placed on products to advise the public that the product is patented.