Sonos v. Google:

The Return of Prosecution Laches?

The doctrine of prosecution laches has rarely been applied by U.S. courts in recent years. A recent decision of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California shows that the doctrine is not yet dead.

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Shifting Scope of Comparison Prior Art

in Design Patent Infringement

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, in Columbia Sportswear North America, Inc., v Seirus Innovative Accessories, Inc., has overruled a longstanding case on the protective scope of design patents. As ruled in Columbia, the scope of prior art available for comparison in infringement analysis is now limited to the same type of article as the patented claim.

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Future Decision G 1/23 Will Complement Opinion G 1/92 By Attempting to Clarify The Threshold Of Enablement For Complex Products To Form Part Of The State Of The Art

Future decision G 1/23 of the Enlarged Board of Appeal of the European Patent Office will shed the light on the criteria that must be met for a (complex) product subject to prior use to form part of the state of the art, and in particular on the extent to which the composition or internal structure of the complex product should be analyzable and reproducible by a skilled person.

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ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Just published - “Artificial Intelligence and Patents: An International Perspective on Patenting AI-Related Inventions”. Based on the collective expertise of legal professionals from around the world, this valuable compendium offers insights on AI and patents from 16 major jurisdictions. Many thanks to each of the authors for their collaborative efforts on this unique publication, including OBWB colleagues, James Carlson, Christophe Besnard, and Jonathan Osha. Available now from Wolters Kluwer with proceeds from the book benefitting the AIPPI Scholarship Fund.

Pictured: Jonathan Osha and co-authors of "Artificial Intelligence & Patents" commemorating a successful book launch at the AIPPI 2023 World Congress in Istanbul.

Jonathan Osha has collaborated on several initiatives addressing the challenges and issues related to artificial intelligence and intellectual property law. It was a notable achievement when earlier this week IPO submitted a report of their comments to the U.S. Copyright Office. Jonathan is the current Co-Vice Chair of IPO's AI & New Emerging Technologies Committee.

LATERAL PARTNER JOINS OBWB

Osha Bergman Watanabe & Burton is pleased to announce that Douglas Hamilton has joined the firm as a partner. Doug is an experienced U.S. Patent Attorney who has forged a successful career in intellectual property law. He holds a law degree from Cornell University and a bachelor's degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Brigham Young University. Prior to embarking on his career in law, Doug practiced as an electrical engineer for Texas Instruments and Cirrus Logic. He co-founded the firm HDC IP Law, LLP where he practiced for several years.

Doug also practiced as an IP attorney for the full-service intellectual property firm of Townsend and Townsend and Crew (Now Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton), and for Faegre & Benson (now Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath). Doug’s passion in the field of IP and his impressive breadth of expertise and experience add tremendous value both to our team and to our network of global clients. Welcome, Douglas!

OBWB RANKED MANSFIELD CERTIFIED PLUS

Osha Bergman Watanabe & Burton LLP is pleased to announce that the firm has once again achieved Midsize Mansfield Certification Plus status for 2022-2023! This recognition is a testament to OBWB's continued commitment to prioritize diversity and inclusion in the workplace.