Articles & Media

Maier & Maier Obtains Grant of Summary Judgment of Invalidity Based on §101 Related to Wearable Technology

»»April 5, 2024 – Maier & Maier PLLC is pleased to report that we secured a victory for our client Firstbeat Technologies OY in a case involving a heart rate measuring apparatus incorporated into wearable technology. The case was originally filed by Polar Electro OY in the District of Delaware on November 7, 2011, but […]

Recent Spotlight on Successful Appellate Review

»»Among the bases for patent term adjustment in section 154(b) is “appellate review by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board or by a Federal court in a case in which the patent was issued under a decision in the review reversing an adverse determination of patentability” (clause (iii) of section 154(b)(1)(C)). Section 154(b)(1)(C) or the […]

USPTO Director Vidal issues key decisions regarding abuse of process in proceedings before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board

»»Two key decisions have been issued from the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (Board) this Thursday regarding abuse of process. The first, Patent Quality Assurance, LLC, v. VLSI Technology LLC, IPR2021-01229, Paper 102, is a precedential decision where the Director of the USPTO Kathi Vidal held that Petitioner Patent Quality Assurance (PQA) abused the Inter-Partes […]

Fifth Circuit Ruling May Impact Venue Transfer for Patent Cases in the Western District of Texas

»»In recent years the Western District of Texas has become an increasingly popular destination for patent litigation, in large part due to the litigant friendly rules propagated by Judge Albright. The Western District of Texas (as well as the Eastern District of Texas, another popular district for patent litigation) is part of the 5th Circuit. […]

New Deadlines to Respond to Trademark Office Actions

»»On December 3, 2022, the United States Patent and Trademark Office will shorten the response deadline for Trademark office actions from 6-months to 3-months. This shortened deadline will apply to all office actions issued on or after December 3, 2022. There will be an opportunity to file one 3-month extension for an additional fee. The […]

Federal Circuit Partially Overturns Invalidation of 4 Software Patents Under §101

»»Inventor Sholem Weisner sued Google LLC for patent infringement of four patents (10,380,202, 10,642,910, 10,394,905 and 10,642,911) in the District Court for the Southern District of New York in 2020. Weisner’s patents all shared the same specification which generally described ways to “digitally record a person’s physical activities and ways to use this digital record.” […]

Federal Circuit Overturns Summary Judgment Based on §101 Ineligibility

»»In a new precedential decision released September 28, 2022, the Federal Circuit overturned a decision from the Northern District of California. The lower court’s decision granted summary judgement for defendant Kollective Technology, finding all claims of plaintiff-complainant Cooperative’s ‘452 patent ineligible under 35 U.S.C. §101. Cooperative’s ‘452 Patent relates to systems and methods for structuring […]

USPTO Transitions to New Online Search Tool, Patent Public Search

»»On September 30, 2022, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) consolidated and replaced four legacy search tools with a single Patent Public Search tool. The new tool is intended to streamline the search process for users and to incorporate new, useful features. The legacy tools that were phased out include: Public-Examiner’s Automated Search […]

Stephen Kunin Named Go To Lawyer for Intellectual Property Law by Virginia Lawyer’s Weekly

»»Maier & Maier partner, Stephen Kunin, has again been named by Virginia Lawyer’s Weekly as a Go To Lawyer for Intellectual Property Law. The selected attorneys were nominated by their colleagues and chosen by a panel from Lawyers Weekly. The full list and individual profiles can be read here.

Protecting Intellectual Property in the Cannabis Industry

»»The ever-growing cannabis industry has induced evolution in both the business and legal worlds. In the past few years, legal sales of cannabis for medical and recreational purposes have significantly increased and are projected to continue rising. The cannabis industry includes both plant-touching and ancillary businesses. Plant-touching businesses focus on breeding and cultivating the cannabis […]