In yet another sign of the strength of the U.S. patent system, the USPTO has now issued Pat. No. 11,000,000. The patent, dated May 11, 2021, was for “Repositioning Wires and Methods for repositioning Prosthetic Heart Valve Devices Within a Heart Chamber and Related Systems, Devices, and Methods”. When the USPTO began numbering patents in […] Earlier this week, IBM announced it would be working with IPwe to launch a new IP Marketplace powered by IBM’s blockchain technology. Organizations can also more easily view the IP as an asset on their balance sheet.” As related technology has been implemented to represent sports memorabilia and iconic moments, digital art, and even social […] Maier & Maier is pleased to announce that distinguished partner, Stephen Kunin, will be speaking in an upcoming Strafford live video webinar, “Overcoming Sect. 101 Rejections: USPTO Guidance, Recent Decisions to Meet Sect. 101 Patent Eligibility Requirements” scheduled for Tuesday, April 27, 1:00pm-2:30pm EDT. We encourage anyone interested in Section 101 issues at the USPTO […] Last week, the Supreme Court issued their long awaited and highly anticipated decision in Google v. Oracle, which had been pending for a decade. In the 6-2 decision for Google, the Court ruled that Google’s use of Oracle’s code was Fair Use, reversing the Federal Circuit’s decision and allowing Google to escape the infringement allegations […] The Maier & Maier litigation team recently secured the dismissal of another patent infringement suit that had been brought against its client. Last month, District Judge Tanya Walton Pratt dismissed patent infringement claims brought by Plaintiff Thomas A. Person against Cigar Reserve LLC and its owners, Brian and Chanda Kurland. In October 2020, Mr. Person […] On March 31st, the conclusion of Women’s History Month, the USPTO concluded its annual Women’s Entrepreneurship Symposium. Each year since 2011, the USPTO has honored diverse panels of successful women innovators, notable inventors, and experts and welcomed them to share their stories of overcoming adversity on their way to success. As part of the symposium, […] As part of Maier & Maier’s ongoing commitment towards serving all of our clients IP needs, we routinely provide research and analysis for Business Intelligence. A major component of these services is surveying the IP Landscape for clients to help clients make informed decisions and to develop a strategic IP Plan. Recently, the team analyzed […] Last week, a Western District of Texas Jury entered a $2.18 billion dollar patent infringement verdict, one of the largest ever awarded in U.S. district court, in VLSI Technology LLC v. Intel Corporation. In the case, VLSI Technology sued Intel Corp for infringement in April 2019 asserting three patents against Intel processors, but only two […] As part of January 15, 2021, the USPTO will discontinue the First Action Interview Pilot Program that’s been in place for the past twelve years. The program allows practitioners to conduct an interview with the examiner prior to the first office action. This interview is held after the examiner’s preliminary prior art search and allows […] As part of the U.S. Federal Government’s response to Covid-19, the USPTO announced programs to prioritize Covid-19 related patent and trademark applications this past May and June respectively. Since this summer, applicants were permitted to apply for special status without the normal payment requirements for special status. Thus far, the USPTO has ushered in nearly […]