Madison on Drafting Local Court Rules for Patent Cases
By Eric Goldman Michael Madison gives an interesting account of his experiences drafting local court rules for patent cases. While the idea of creating some incentives for parties to engage in forum-shopping may sound good in theory, I wonder how…
Can Congress Provide Copyright Protection to Software?
Aharonian v. Gonzales, No. 04-05190-MHP (N.D. Ca.). This case got some press when it was first filed. The plaintiff’s basic contention is that it is unconstitutional for Congress to provide copyright protection for software. This is a pretty wacky claim,…
Patent Reform Act of 2005–July 26 Draft
A new draft of the Patent Reform Act of 2005 (HR 2795) has been circulated. Among other noteworthy aspects, this draft drops the limitations on injunctive relief–perhaps expedient to move the bill forward, but a disappointing omission IMO nonetheless. At…
Patent Reform Act of 2005 Introduced
The Patent Reform Act of 2005 has been introduced. The bill itself is fairly complicated. Rep. Lamar Smith’s press release summarizes the key features: “· Provides that the right to a patent will be awarded to the first inventor to…
Patent Act of 2005 Proposed Draft
The “Committee print” version of the proposal is available here. Prior comments here.
Patent Act of 2005
Matthew Buchanan of Promote the Progress has assembled some source material regarding the proposed Patent Act of 2005, a surprisingly broad proposal to reform patent law. Among other significant changes, it proposes to scrap the first to invent standard in…
Slate Exhibit on Breast Enhancement Patents
Slate has a “revealing” (sorry) look at patents related to breast enhancements throughout history. We tend not to think of the patent database as a great porn resource, but there’s plenty of titillation for those who know where to look….