Please answer the questions on the attached document below by following the guidelines.
3.1 An invention must be a process or product and not excluded because it is a law of nature, physical phenomenon, or abstract idea. Which of the following could be patented?
- Discovery of oil under Boca Raton, FL.
- Brad discovers a bacteria that eats rust. He wants to patent his finding as a natural means to combat rust.
- Ethan, a gerontologist, created a human kidney that would extend the lifespan of a diseased human.
3.2 A new drug is described in an article in an new and not well-known pharmaceutical journal. The journal printed 200 of the journals but never got around to trying to distribute them. Ronald invents an identical process, had no connection with the new pharmaceutical journal, nor the author of the article published in that journal.
- Q: Can Ronald patent his invention even though it was described in the not well-known pharmaceutical journal?
- Q: What if the article is distributed after Ronald’s date of invention? Or what about if it is distributed before the date of Ronald’sapplication?
3.3 Delaney patents a new type of satellite. Not long after Delaney begins the patent application, Shari builds an identical satellite. Shari objects to the patent application saying that the patent is invalid because it was obvious to anyone in their field of expertise. She says the satellite is simply a combination of observations published in earlier journals. But, nothing in the earlier journals suggested using all of the elements together, nor did it suggest the outcome Delaney was able to achieve. Now, it is true that there is substantial skill required by those who engage in creating satellites and further that it means that one skilled in the art would find the combinations obvious.
- Q: Should the court accept this argument?
3.4 Amy comes up with a new idea for a baby swing. She tries the swing out on family babies, then gives them to friends, and eventually sells them at town festivals. Many years later, Amy decides to file for a patent for her design.
- Q: Should her patent application be accepted?
3.5 The standard used to determine the right to file according to the 1952 Patent Act used the first to invent. How does the 2011 America Invents Act change this standard for inventions filed after September 16, 2013?
3.6 Joey files a patent application for a drug that will combat dementia. The method is promising, but at the time of filing the application, Joey cannot show the efficacy of the drug by using any type of lab tests, nor has he run any type of trials on humans.. The inventor does make a good argument that the drug is highly likely to work.
- Q: Does Joey meet the utility requirement?
3.7 A patented heart medication selling for $125 per pill is protected by a patent on Monday. On Tuesday, the patent expires and those with a prescription for that drug may be able to choose instead, a generic, which is that drug without the trademarked name. That generic drug may now cost $4.
- Question: What does that suggest about the pharmaceutical industry?
3.8 Would a cross-licensing practice have an adverse impact on smaller companies who may not have large numbers of patents that are sufficiently attractive to use as leverage in negotiating a cross-licensing agreement?
3.9 Neko invented a slot that allowed Amazon to deliver his packages directly inside his house using a slot beside the front door. It wasn’t perfect, but he thought it was worth pursuing. He applied for a patent and it was granted. But he really doesn’t know anything about marketing, so he never even managed to sell a single slot. Many years later, Aaron happens to see the patent on the USPTO website. He thinks it’s a great idea and so he begins mass producing the slot and sells it online. It’s a great success. Neko sees one on the television and realizes it’s his idea. He decides to sue Aaron for infringement.
- Question: Can Aaron raise the defense of laches against Neko?
3.10 One of the most significant public policy issues related to the patent system is the departure from our free market economic system which values competition as a driving force. Yet with the patent system, we grant a twenty year monopoly for utility and plant patents and a fifteen year monopoly for design patents. The grant of a monopoly is sometimes justified by saying, “we, the people†get full disclosure in return for that monopoly. Certainly in the 1800s and much of the 1900s, that would have been a fair trade off. But the reality today is that there are very few things that cannot be reverse engineered. Also relevant to this issue, is the fact that technology is advancing so rapidly that a 20 year monopoly for an iPhone could mean 10 generations of that product.
- Questions: Is it still a fair trade off? Is the 20 year monopoly necessary or should it be less?
Guidelines |
Examine both sides of the issue.
It is important to think systematically about these questions. Do not just evaluate on the basis od how 1 person would be affected, but think how the entire system (whether it’s the economic system, the political system, or the innovative system) that will be affected.
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