Today, I spoke at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to discuss the impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on prior art and the Person Having Ordinary Skill In The Art (PHOSITA) standard. The session brought stakeholders in AI technology together across disciplines to discuss the request for comments issued by the USPTO earlier…
Career C&B attorney John Owen has been recognized by Business North Carolina magazine as the top Intellectual Property attorney in North Carolina for the year 2024. His high quality work product and overwhelmingly positive feedback from peers throughout the industry has even earned Mr. Owen a spot on the front cover of the magazine’s January…
On 13 March 2023, the Federal Circuit issued a precedential decision in Intel Corp. v. PACT XPP Schweiz AG, No. 22-1037 (Fed. Cir. 2023). The decision relates to the requirements for showing that a patent claim is unpatentably obvious. The Patent Office will often find that an invention as claimed is not patentable because the…
Jurors have reached a much-anticipated verdict in the Depp v. Heard defamation trial. In case you haven’t already heard, Johnny Depp sued Amber Heard for defamation, asking a jury for $50 million in damages. Ms. Heard countersued for defamation, asking the same jury for $100 million in damages. After deliberating for about 13 hours over…
In a previous post, we emphasized that copyright protections do not extend to elements of a work that are unoriginal. A recent precedential decision from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals reinforces these principles, emphasizing the need to consider to what extent a work is genuinely an original work of authorship. If you haven’t been following along,…
Dua Lipa has been sued for copyright infringement by Artikal Sound System (who goes by “ASS” for short). As part of their complaint, ASS alleges that it is highly unlikely that Dua Lipa’s hit song “Levitating” (released in 2020) was created independently from the ASS song “Live Your Life” (released in 2017). A copyright arises…
In January 2022, Attorney William G. Pagán was a guest lecturer for three sections of an “Inventions and Innovations” class at Elko Middle School in Henrico County, Virginia. The class, taught by Technology Education Teacher Kennesha Walker, was intended (among other things) to expose middle school children to various intellectual property concerns associated with devising inventive solutions and bringing them to the…
Applicants who have obtained a patent may be dissatisfied with the scope of protection they have obtained. In some cases, an applicant may discover that their patent is too narrow to be worthwhile. Alternatively, an applicant may find that their patent is so broad that the patent is probably invalid. In other cases, a patent…
Coats & Bennett, PLLC is proud to welcome its newest associate, Patent Attorney Bennett C. David. Licensed to practice at the USPTO since 2016, Bennett holds a B.S. in Computer Engineering from North Carolina A&T State University, a Masters of Business Administration from Suffolk School of Management, and a law degree from Suffolk University Law…
UPDATE: Given the recent impact of COVID-19, and out of an abundance of caution and care for the team here at Coats & Bennett, PLLC, we must regretfully withdraw from attending this trip in support of the Hispanic National Bar Association. However, please rest assured that we wish we could be with you all, and we will…