The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit recently issued a decision that highlights a risk in design patent prosecution—specifically, attempting to claim priority to a utility application. In ...

July 31, 2023 - Design patents and utility patents have co-existed in harmony — each staying in its own lane, covering its own subject matter — for over 180 years. The U.S. Patent Act was enacted in ...

A design patent may include only one claim and it “shall be in formal terms to the ornamental design for the article.” But the scope of the claimed design must be construed in order to identify those ...

“The notion of patent-eligible subject matter applies only to utility patents. As a result, the enforcement of design patents avoids this potential area of dispute and attendant risk of invalidation, ...

While trade secrets provide several noteworthy advantages over patents, trademarks, and copyrights, establishing and maintaining a trade secret is not without its obstacles. Both patents and trade ...