On May 4th, OBWB's Houston office gathered to celebrate the firm's 25th anniversary.

Photo Credit: ANIRUDH

On May 18, 2023, in Amgen Inc. v. Sanofi the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed invalidity of two Amgen patents claiming antibodies. In its unanimous 9-0 decision, the Court held that the Amgen patents did not fully enable the multitude of antibodies of a claimed genus that was described functionally.

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Photo Credit: Jon Tyson

U.S. judicial precedent regarding of “fair use” in copyright cases – i.e., where certain limited uses of a copyrighted work are legal despite no permission from the copyright owner – has been ambiguous for many years. The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Andy Warhol Foundation v. Goldsmith has brought some much-needed clarity to fair use law. The Court clearly recognized the copyright owner’s exclusive right to create derivative works, and that merely making changes to a work while using it in the same fashion as the copyright owner was not enough to establish a fair use defense.

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Unitary Patent and UPC – A Brief Catch-Up

Photo Credit: Christian Lue

The new legal provisions relating to the Unified Patent Court (UPC) and the unitary patent will enter into force on June 1^st, 2023, and will concern all European patent applications pending on that date as well as all European patents in force on that date, including those already granted and validated at national level. While these provisions do not change the procedure before the grant of European patents, they impose an updating of the protection and litigation strategy in Europe.

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WIPO Mediation – A Path to Resolution for Some IP Rights Litigation Cases

Photo Credit: Wesley Tingey

Mediation has gained popularity as an economical and effective way to help parties resolve their disputes without the risk and expense involved in litigation in courts. The WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center, established in 1994, continues to offer alternative dispute resolution options for international commercial disputes between private parties. 

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OBWB partner Han-Mei Tso was part of the AIPLA delegation to visit the Korean Patent Court. She gave an insightful presentation on injunctions under U.S. law. Read the article here.

Photo Courtesy of the Patent Court

OBWB partner Carlyn Burton participated in one of IPOEF's World IP Day Houston events held at Young Women’s College Preparatory Academy, an all-girls public school in Houston with a STEM focus. Carlyn spoke to the entire rising senior class about careers in intellectual property.