The PTAB held that the claims in Ex parte Quimby, Appeal No. 2016-004681 (June 2, 2017) were directed toward unpatentable subject matter. Of particular interest given the claim language, the Appellant was unsuccessful with argum…
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How is the USPTO’s Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) addressing patent-eligibility rejections under 35 U.S.C. § 101 in ex parte appeals? What arguments work, and what arguments fail, when you are trying to persuade the PTA…
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Citing KSR Inti Co. v. Teleflex Inc, the PTAB in Ex Parte Mattisson (Appeal No. 2016-004484, April 14, 2017) agreed with the ex parte Appellants and reversed the Examiner’s rejection based on insufficient rationale to support an…
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Many practitioners view words of approximation, such as “substantially,” as useful tools to broaden claim language. MPEP §2173.05(b) states that words of approximation are acceptable if one of ordinary skill in the art would…
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Claims to managing social media privacy survive the Mayo/Alice patent-eligibility test, says the PTAB, reversing an Examiner’s rejection under 35 U.S.C. § 101. Ex parte Drake Sutton-Shearer, Appeal 2015-003977, Application 1…
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