On June 6, 2025, United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) Acting Director Coke Morgan Stewart exercised her authority under 35 U.S.C. § 314(a) to grant Welch Allyn’s (“Patent Owner”) request to discretionarily deny institution of five inter partes review (“IPR”) proceedings initiated by iRhythm Technologies (“Petitioner”). The USPTO…
Publications
Irwin IP Publications is the go-to resource for the latest updates and insights in the world of intellectual property. Over 250 articles are published on cases addressing unique issues, all of which can be found using the search tool below. Additionally, there is a collection of articles/papers and presentations that cover a wide range of topics. Whether you’re a legal professional, business owner, or simply someone passionate about IP, our publications page will provide you with all the knowledge needed to navigate this dynamic field.
When prosecuting a patent with similar language across various claims make sure your claim terms have different meanings, otherwise, during litigation you may lose the strategic opportunity to keep some claims valid if others are found invalid. In Power2B v. Samsung, the Federal Circuit (“CAFC”) reversed a decision of…
On May 21, 2025, the Federal Circuit en banc banished the notion that the reliability of an expert’s methodology under Federal Rule of Evidence 702 (“Rule 702”) is a question of weight, not admissibility. The en banc Court vacated a jury’s award of over $20 million in damages and…
On May 12, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit vacated the Patent Trial and Appeals Board’s (“PTAB”) conception ruling in favor of Broad Institute, MIT, and Harvard College (collectively “Broad”) and against the University of California, University of Vienna, and Emmanuelle Charpentier (collectively “Regents”). The…
The USPTO Director’s recent decision in Semiconductor Components v. Greenthread squarely addresses a recurring procedural issue in inter partes reviews: what happens when a patent owner is denied discovery into privity and then faulted for failing to prove it? In vacating the PTAB’s final written decisions, the Director sent…
If you’re a startup founder, innovator, or creative professional, understanding your intellectual property is essential to protecting and growing your business. In this presentation, Irwin IP attorneys will break down patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, and how each can add value to your business—including emerging issues around IP and…
The ™️ and ©️ symbols are more than just formalities – used correctly, they can be a competitive edge for your brand! Learn how to build business success and brand equity with Irwin IP attorneys Jason Keener and Suet Lee….
On April 29, 2025, the Federal Circuit adopted a test from the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (“TTAB”) for determining whether a color mark is generic. Under the test, the Federal Circuit affirmed that a color mark for medical examination gloves did not function as a source indicator, lacked…
The Digital Replica Accountability and Identity Protection Act Preamble Purpose: To protect individuals against the unauthorized creation and distribution of realistic digital deepfakes – computer-generated replicas of a person’s name, image, voice, or likeness – while safeguarding free expression, artistic creativity, and technological innovation. This Act establishes clear personal…
The estoppel provision of the American Invents Act (AIA) (35 U.S.C. § 315(e)(2)) prevents a petitioner in an inter parties review (IPR) proceeding from later raising before the Patent Office, a district court, or the International Trade Commission any invalidity “ground that the petitioner raised or reasonably could have raised”…
Be careful when selecting a name for your product, otherwise you might find yourself cooked at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“PTO”)! Enlisting an expert trademark attorney to oversee your trademark application, especially when there is a similar mark in a related field that is already registered,…
In McGucken v. Valnet, the Supreme Court is being asked to reevaluate a controversial copyright rule known as the “Server Test,” which determines liability based on how an image is displayed online—not whether it actually appears on your screen. Dr. Elliot McGucken claims that embedding his Instagram photos without…
The Federal Circuit recently opined on whether a stipulation in litigation can overcome a disclaimer made during the prosecution history of a patent. The Hatch-Waxman Act allows generic drug companies to use clinical results from brand-name drugs in the FDA approval process. In exchange, the brand-name drug companies get…
After Novartis’ patent on the blockbuster blood pressure medication Entresto was found invalid at the district court for covering technology that was developed after the patent was filed, the Federal Circuit reversed that decision. The Federal Circuit explained that while the later-arising technology fell within the claims of the…
The Hatch-Waxman Act seeks to strike a balance in the pharmaceutical industry by incentivizing drugs makers to develop innovative drugs with additional patent protections while also providing shortened regulatory review procedures for generic drug manufacturers to rapidly get generic versions of the patented name-brand drugs to market after the…
On February 6, 2025, the Second Circuit held that the “articulation requirement” for a trade dress complaint—a pleading requirement under which plaintiffs must articulate with precision the components making up their claimed trade dress—is independent of and must be satisfied prior to evaluating the elements of trade dress infringement…
On February 26, 2025, the United States Supreme Court unanimously overturned a $43 million damages award arising out of a trademark infringement lawsuit. The Court held that when awarding the “defendant’s profits” to the plaintiff under 15 U.S.C. § 1117(a) of the Lanham Act, the plaintiffs are entitled only…
On March 5, 2025, the Federal Circuit vacated the International Trade Commission (“ITC”)’s decision and exercised its “independent judgment” based on the Supreme Court’s Loper Bright decision, which overturned Chevron, to evaluate the ITC’s long-standing practice of narrowly interpreting the domestic industry requirement of Section 337 of the Tariff…