Life sciences patent applications often contain DNA, RNA, and amino acid sequences in the specification, claims, or figures that are required to be provided in the form of a sequence listing. The inclusion of sequences in patent applications are compulsory to satisfy patent office …›
Owen Grayson Hosseinzadeh, Law Clerk in San Diego, contributed to the drafting of this post. The standard for written description in the life sciences seems to have tightened lately, leading patent applicants to wonder what level of written support and working example data is necessary …›
After a myriad of challenges, delays, and hurdles, the setting up of the pan-European patent court, the Unified Patent Court (UPC), is finally gaining traction. On January 19, 2022, the UPC came into existence as an international organization. This date marks the beginning of …›
Update: On March 16, 2022, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit denied Biogen International’s petition for panel rehearing and rehearing en banc, following a November split decision discussed below. Judges Lourie, Moore, and Newman dissented on the denial of en banc rehearing. …›
Patent term extension (PTE) provides additional patent term for patents related to U.S. pharmaceutical products to compensate for the effective loss of patent term caused by delay during the drug approval process by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). To be eligible for …›
Starting February 1, 2022, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) will begin inviting selected applicants to participate in a pilot program to defer subject matter eligibility examination until final disposition of the application or all other rejections have been addressed. The theory behind …›
The increasing presence of data-driven solutions in the healthcare and life sciences sector is apparent from the rise in numbers of patents and patent applications. The number of published bioinformatics patents and patent applications in the last decade has nearly doubled. Bioinformatics …›
The Federal Circuit continues to tighten the standards for written description of functional claims, particularly in the biologics realm, which is putting patent applicants in the position of having to pursue narrow claims directed to specific sequences. At the same time, reliance on the …›
Genus claims have long been an important component of patent strategy, extending coverage around a lead compound to stop would-be competitors. Recent decisions from the Federal Circuit, however, highlight a tightening standard for written description and enablement of genus claims for biologic inventions, leading …›
10/27/2021 Update: The adopted regulation ((EU) 2021/1873) is now officially published in the Journal of the EU. In accordance with the vote of the Council of the European Union on October 5, 2021, the European Union has adopted a new regulation aimed at extending the …›