[Patentpractice] Freaking Ridiculous: Proposed changes to terminal disclaimer practice to promote innovation and competition

Thu May 9 18:33:04 UTC 2024

"In which any claim was held unpatentable" - - regardless of whether the
claims are similar or not? Wow.

On Thu, May 9, 2024, 13:23 Suzannah K. Sundby via Patentpractice <
patentpractice at oppedahl-lists.com> wrote:

> This is so freaking ridiculous.
>
>
>
> It’s an attempt to limit continuations and prevent/reduce patents…
> basically what Dudas tried to do with continuation practice…
>
>
>
> Suzannah K. Sundby <http://www.linkedin.com/in/ssundby/> *|* Partner
>
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> *From:* U.S. Patent and Trademark Office <
> subscriptioncenter at subscriptions.uspto.gov>
> *Sent:* Thursday, May 9, 2024 2:17 PM
> *To:* Suzannah K. Sundby <suzannah at canadylortz.com>
> *Subject:* Proposed changes to terminal disclaimer practice to promote
> innovation and competition
>
>
>
> The USPTO has issued a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to add a new
> requirement for terminal disclaimers.
>
>
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> Having trouble viewing this email? View it as a Web page
> <https://lnks.gd/l/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJidWxsZXRpbl9saW5rX2lkIjoxMDAsInVyaSI6ImJwMjpjbGljayIsInVybCI6Imh0dHBzOi8vY29udGVudC5nb3ZkZWxpdmVyeS5jb20vYWNjb3VudHMvVVNQVE8vYnVsbGV0aW5zLzM5YjgzMjYiLCJidWxsZXRpbl9pZCI6IjIwMjQwNTA5Ljk0NTY1OTIxIn0.EyMw7a2q5wF5cdpvZJUCX1wdqcG-VKQvfp7Ug9tWBsI/s/1514988646/br/242170303451-l>
> .
>
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> News Brief
>
> [image: US Patent and Trademark Office]
>
>
> Proposed changes to terminal disclaimer practice to promote innovation and
> competition
>
> The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has issued a notice
> of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to add a new requirement for terminal
> disclaimers filed to obviate (overcome) nonstatutory double patenting.
>
> Under U.S. law, an inventor, patent owner or joint researchers may obtain
> more than one patent with claims that vary in only minor (patentably
> indistinct) ways from each other. The USPTO will reject such claims under
> “obviousness-type double patenting” (also known as “nonstatutory double
> patenting”) and will allow claims to issue only as long as the practice of
> obtaining similar claims across patents isn’t used to extend the patent
> exclusivity term or allow multiple parties to harass an alleged infringer.
> Both conditions aim to strike a balance between incentivizing innovation in
> the first instance while providing more certainty to competitors and the
> public.
>
> The proposed rule responds to public feedback and proposes to add a third
> condition that would further promote innovation and competition by reducing
> the cost of separately challenging each patent in a group of multiple
> patents directed to indistinct variations of a single invention. Under the
> proposed rule, to overcome double patenting the patentee would need to
> agree that the patent with the terminal disclaimer will be enforceable only
> if the patent is not tied and has never been tied through one or more
> terminal disclaimers to a patent in which any claim has been finally held
> unpatentable or invalid over prior art. In addition to reducing costs, the
> proposed rule is expected to streamline and expedite patent disputes,
> narrow validity issues, and provide greater certainty to competitors and to
> the public. The proposed rule is prospective in nature and would apply to
> terminal disclaimers filed on or after the effective date of any final
> rule.
>
> The USPTO recognizes that, as with any proposed rule change, patentees
> will need to consider and potentially adapt their practices. While the
> USPTO moves forward with rulemaking, the Office is considering ways the
> Office can support stakeholders. Comments on the proposed rule, as well as
> comments on USPTO practice as related to the proposed rule, are welcome.
>
> “Our mission at the USPTO is to drive U.S. innovation and global
> competitiveness for the benefit of all Americans,” said Under Secretary of
> Commerce and Director of the USPTO Kathi Vidal. “This proposed rule is part
> of a holistic, thoughtful and balanced approach to bolstering our strong
> intellectual property system. We must remain steadfast in incentivizing and
> protecting the investments in innovation that drive U.S. leadership, while
> recognizing that surgical changes can create efficiencies that reduce costs
> and promote competition.”
>
> The full text of the notice is available at the Federal Register
> <https://lnks.gd/l/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJidWxsZXRpbl9saW5rX2lkIjoxMDEsInVyaSI6ImJwMjpjbGljayIsInVybCI6Imh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmZlZGVyYWxyZWdpc3Rlci5nb3YvcHVibGljLWluc3BlY3Rpb24vMjAyNC0xMDE2Ni90ZXJtaW5hbC1kaXNjbGFpbWVyLXByYWN0aWNlLXRvLW9idmlhdGUtbm9uc3RhdHV0b3J5LWRvdWJsZS1wYXRlbnRpbmc_dXRtX2NhbXBhaWduPXN1YnNjcmlwdGlvbmNlbnRlciZ1dG1fY29udGVudD0mdXRtX21lZGl1bT1lbWFpbCZ1dG1fbmFtZT0mdXRtX3NvdXJjZT1nb3ZkZWxpdmVyeSZ1dG1fdGVybT0iLCJidWxsZXRpbl9pZCI6IjIwMjQwNTA5Ljk0NTY1OTIxIn0.Ri4CT8s3uXvsmWzgIT6enHV9Hrhc7nCW0h1JVCsMOuc/s/1514988646/br/242170303451-l> and
> on the USPTO’s Patent Related Notices webpage
> <https://lnks.gd/l/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJidWxsZXRpbl9saW5rX2lkIjoxMDIsInVyaSI6ImJwMjpjbGljayIsInVybCI6Imh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnVzcHRvLmdvdi9wYXRlbnRzL2xhd3MvcGF0ZW50LXJlbGF0ZWQtbm90aWNlcy9wYXRlbnQtcmVsYXRlZC1ub3RpY2VzLTIwMjQ_dXRtX2NhbXBhaWduPXN1YnNjcmlwdGlvbmNlbnRlciZ1dG1fY29udGVudD0mdXRtX21lZGl1bT1lbWFpbCZ1dG1fbmFtZT0mdXRtX3NvdXJjZT1nb3ZkZWxpdmVyeSZ1dG1fdGVybT0iLCJidWxsZXRpbl9pZCI6IjIwMjQwNTA5Ljk0NTY1OTIxIn0.BHMm-eKtJM5AEEgPIU_ronUBHxMEOnDJBZwwTU31SWE/s/1514988646/br/242170303451-l>.
> You must submit comments on the NPRM by July 9, through the Federal
> eRulemaking Portal
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