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District court invalidates USPTO interpretation of patent term adjustment RCE carve-out

  • Foley & Lardner LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • November 5 2012

In a decision issued November 1, 2012 in Exelixis, Inc. v. Kappos, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia has found that the USPTO’s interpretation and application of the “RCE carve-out” provision of the Patent Term Adjustment (PTA) statute is contrary to law.

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The Patent Term Adjustment pendulum swings the other way

  • Foley & Lardner LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • January 29 2013

On January 28, 2012, Judge Brinkema of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia issued a decision in a different Exelixis v

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A major change in patent term adjustment calculus: how a valuable tool in the patent prosecution process (RCEs) may now be even more valuable

  • Venable LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • November 16 2012

A recent U.S. District Court ruling will likely have far-reaching implications for determining Patent Term Adjustment.

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District court decision opens door to additional patent term adjustment

  • Morrison & Foerster LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • November 14 2012

In Exelixis, Inc. v. Kappos, a federal district court overturned the USPTO’s interpretation of the patent term adjustment (“PTA”) statute, finding that a Request for Continued Examination (“RCE”) filed after three years from the patent application filing date does not impact PTA.

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Exelixis revisited: conflict in determining patent term adjustment

  • Venable LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • January 28 2013

On January 28, 2013, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia issued a decision in Exelixis, Inc. v. Kappos (Case No

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You may be entitled to additional patent term: recent developments in U.S. patent term adjustment

  • Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • March 14 2013

The normally dry and arcane topic of patent term adjustment (PTA) has taken on new urgency and importance over the past several months as recent

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Recent developments in patent term adjustment practice

  • Squire Sanders
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • January 25 2013

The standard term of a patent is 20 years from the date the application is filed. Under the Patent Act, US patents are subject to adjustment to

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Patent term adjustment update - Exelixis v. Kappos

  • Armstrong Teasdale LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • November 16 2012

A recent ruling by the Eastern District of Virginia recently found that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) had been incorrectly calculating a patent term adjustment statute concerning a Request for Continued Examination (RCE).

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Court's PTA decision could add term to affected patents

  • Foley & Lardner LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • November 7 2012

On November 1, 2012, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia (Ellis, III, J.) interpreted the patent term adjustment (PTA) statute (35 U.S.C. 154) in a manner that could result in significant additional patent term for many U.S. patents.

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Court holds that USPTO rules limiting patent term adjustment awards when request for continued examination is filed are invalid

  • Edwards Wildman Palmer LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • November 12 2012

On November 1, 2012, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia held that Patent Term Adjustment (“PTA”) awards arising from the failure of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) to grant a patent within three years of the patent application filing date are not necessarily curtailed by a Request for Continued Examination (“RCE”) filed more than three years after the filing date.

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Court ruling may lengthen term of many U.S. patents

  • Dechert LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • November 9 2012

In a major victory for patent holders, a federal court ruled on November 1 that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s interpretation of the statute governing the term of a patent, which the Patent Office has implemented for the past decade, is wrong.

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U.S. district court finds the USPTO is improperly calculating patent term adjustment

  • Neal Gerber & Eisenberg LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • November 20 2012

Patent Term Adjustment (PTA) extends the length of a U.S. patent’s term to compensate for certain delays by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) during examination of the U.S. patent application.

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Challenging the USPTO’s patent term adjustment calculations for RCEs

  • Foley & Lardner LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • June 5 2012

Recently several cases have been filed that challenge the USPTO’s Patent Term Adjustment (PTA) calculations in patents where an RCE has been filed.

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USPTO improperly shortening some patent terms

  • Thompson Hine LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • December 20 2012

On November 1, 2012, Judge Ellis of the Eastern District of Virginia issued a decision that affects the period of enforceability of thousands of United States patents.

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Court determines USPTO is undercalculating patent term adjustments

  • Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • November 12 2012

District court’s decision could lead to a minimum of 17 years of post-issuance patent terms for most standard patents.

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Step right up and adjust your patent term: court finds improper PTO calculations

  • Haynes and Boone LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • November 14 2012

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (“PTO”) has been improperly calculating patent term adjustment (“PTA”) for some patents, specifically, in cases where prosecution of the underlying application involved the filing of a Request for Continued Examination (“RCE”) more than three years after the original filing.

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Preserving your right to patent term adjustment: the Exelixis decision and lessons from Wyeth

  • Hunton & Williams LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • December 12 2012

The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia recently overturned the United States Patent & Trademark Office (“USPTO”) interpretation of the patent term adjustment (“PTA”) statute in Exelixis, Inc. v. Kappos.

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IP report January 2013

  • Baker Botts LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • January 8 2013

Recent case law has impacted how the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) calculates Patent Term Adjustment (PTA) and when an applicant or patentee can

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Maximizing Patent Term Adjustment under Exelixis

  • Foley & Lardner LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • January 24 2013

A number of Patent Term Adjustment (PTA) cases have been filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia since the November 1

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District court decision in Exelixis changes calculation of "B Delay" patent term adjustment

  • Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • January 17 2013

On November 1, 2012, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia held that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has been

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Life sciences: 2013 legal developments you need to know about

  • Mayer Brown LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • February 11 2013

Under the Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) Act, when an acquisition meets certain monetary thresholds, the parties must submit a premerger notification form

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New PTA calculations to extend PTA length for many new applications

  • Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • November 26 2012

On November 1, 2012, the Eastern District of Virginia addressed whether the United States Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) properly calculates “B time” Patent Term Adjustment (PTA) under 35 USC 154 in view of Requests for Continuing Examination (RCEs) filed past the statutory three years.

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District court says USPTO miscalculates patent term adjustment

  • Sullivan & Worcester LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • November 12 2012

The law provides patent applicants an adjustment in patent term to compensate for USPTO delays during prosecution.

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The expedited request for continued examination choosing the right strategy for fast-tracked prosecution

  • Morrison & Foerster LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • June 27 2012

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has announced new rules relating to the inclusion of Requests for Continued Examination (RCEs) into its Track I program for fee-based expedited examination.

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Important notice regarding patent term adjustment

  • Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren SC
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • December 13 2012

A U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia decision held that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has been incorrectly determining patent term adjustment (PTA) for some patents in which a Request for Continued Examination (RCE) was filed during prosecution of the application.

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A look at the USPTO's March 2011 statistics

  • Foley & Lardner LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • April 22 2011

The latest post on "Director's Forum," the public blog of USPTO Director Kappos, is a guest post by Bob Stoll, the Commissioner for Patents, announcing the release of March 2011 data on the USPTO's Patents Dashboard.

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District Court denies equitable tolling, Fifth Amendment taking in Novartis patent term adjustment case

  • Foley & Lardner LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • November 20 2012

In another significant Patent Term Adjustment (PTA) case decided last week (Novartis AG v. Kappos, Civ. Action No. 10-cv-1138 (Nov. 15, 2012)), the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia found that Novartis could benefit from “ordinary tolling” but not “equitable tolling” in its efforts to obtain additional PTA for 23 patents.

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Change in USPTO processing of RCEs likely to significantly delay prosecution

  • Foley & Lardner LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • October 26 2009

On November 15, 2009, the USPTO will implement a critical revision to internal procedures that places newly filed requests for continued examination (RCEs) on an examiner's "special new" docket instead of hisher "amended" docket.

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Court rules that USPTO is mis-calculating patent term adjustment

  • Fox Rothschild LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • November 12 2012

Owners of certain recently-granted patents may be able to extend the patent’s term in certain situations, according to a recent court ruling from the Eastern District of Virginia.

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USPTO reshuffles the RCE deck

  • Foley & Lardner LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • May 9 2013

The USPTO still is considering information gathered during its RCE Outreach program, but it has made some internal changes that should lead to more

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District court holds filing of request for continued examination does not reduce patent term adjustment

  • Sterne Kessler Goldstein & Fox
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • November 9 2012

On November 1, 2012, the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia issued a decision in Exelixis v. Kappos (Case No. 1:12cv96), rejecting the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s (USPTO’s) interpretation of the statute which provides patentees with additional patent term to compensate for delays in prosecution caused by the USPTO.

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USPTO says status inquiry triggers patent term adjustment deduction

  • Foley & Lardner LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • September 22 2011

Despite statistics on the USPTO's Patents Dashboard indicating that the average time from a Request for Continued Examination (RCE) to the next Office Action is 3.8 months, I continue to experience much more significant delays of 9-12 months or longer.

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Federal Circuit creates opportunity for patent owners to increase patent term

  • Hunton & Williams LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • January 13 2010

Thousands of U.S. patents are likely to have been issued with improperly shortened patent terms, according to a recent decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

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Will challenges to the USPTO’s patent term adjustment RCE carve-out gain traction?

  • Foley & Lardner LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • October 29 2012

In a complaint filed October 19, 2012, Biogen Idec MA Inc. joined patent holders such as Exelixis, Inc.and Human Genome Sciences, Inc., who are challenging the USPTO’s interpretation of 35 USC 154(b)(1)(B)(i)).

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Court Identifies USPTO error in patent term adjustment calculations

  • Nutter McClennen & Fish LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • November 15 2012

The Eastern District of Virginia recently determined in Exelixis, Inc. v. Kappos that the USPTO has been miscalculating Patent Term Adjustment in cases where a Request for Continued Examination was filed after three or more years of pendency.

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Court overturns reduction of patent term adjustment for patents with responses filed after weekends and federal holidays

  • Edwards Wildman Palmer LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • August 2 2011

On June 23, 2011, the U.S. District Court for District of Columbia overturned the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s (USPTO’s) award of patent term adjustment (PTA) and held that the USPTO’s reduction of the PTA award due to a response filed on the day after Veterans Day was erroneous.

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USPTO seeks comments on Request for Continued Examination (RCE) practice

  • Foley & Lardner LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • December 13 2012

The USPTO is seeking public comments on Request for Continued Examination (RCE) practice.

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District court decision opens door to additional patent term adjustment

  • Morrison & Foerster LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • January 15 2013

In Exelixis, Inc v Kappos a federal district court overturned the US Patent and Trademark Office's (USPTO) interpretation of the patent term

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USPTO appeals Exelixis patent term adjustment decision

  • Foley & Lardner LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • January 4 2013

As expected, the USPTO has filed a Notice of Appeal in the Exelixis patent term adjustment (PTA) case. As I summarized in this article, in a decision

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USPTO backlog update: one step forward, one step back

  • Foley & Lardner LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • July 21 2011

The USPTO has been touting recent data indicating that it continues to make progress in reducing the backlog of new patent applications awaiting examination

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Federal Circuit may have more to say on patent term adjustment (PTA) as USPTO appeals Exelixis v. Kappos

  • Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • January 8 2013

Three years removed from the Federal Circuit's decision in Wyeth v. Kappos, patentees are seeking additional extensions of patent

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Newly appointed USPTO director wastes no time making his mark

  • Alston & Bird LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • October 21 2009

On August 7, 2009, the Senate confirmed David Kappos as the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO or the "Office").

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Make sure you’re getting your full patent term adjustment in light of recent ruling

  • Choate Hall & Stewart LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • November 20 2012

Your patents may have a longer term than you think.

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New patent term adjustment calculation could lengthen patent term

  • Foley & Lardner LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • March 17 2010

The Federal Circuit's recent decision in Wyeth v. Kappos may result in longer patent terms for many patents.

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Holding the USPTO accountable for the RCE backlog

  • Foley & Lardner LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • May 22 2012

As I was cleaning up my office a few weeks ago, I came across a December 2009 article I wrote with my colleague Steve Reid for BNA’s Patent, Trademark & Copyright Journal, entitled “New Patent Office Examination Procedures: Bane or Boon?”

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Federal Circuit determines proper calculation of patent term adjustment for issued patents

  • Barnes & Thornburg LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • January 25 2010

On Jan. 7, 2010, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit announced a decision that requires the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to calculate patent term adjustment (PTA) in a manner that could allow additional protection term for many U.S. patents.

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Proposed changes to Patent Term Adjustment rules--looking a gift horse in the mouth

  • Foley & Lardner LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • April 15 2011

On April 6, 2011, the USPTO announced proposed changes to the Patent Term Adjustment (PTA) rules that would award PTA for USPTO delay when an examiner reopens prosecution after a notice of appeal has been filed.

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USPTO revises patent term adjustment (PTA) practice

  • Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • April 9 2013

On April 1, 2013, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) issued interim final rules amending several rules relating to patent term adjustment

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HR 6621 would add new barriers to patent term adjustment (PTA) appeals

  • Foley & Lardner LLP
  • -
  • USA
  • -
  • December 11 2012

Although most of HR 6621 (introduced by Rep. Lamar Smith on Nov. 30, 2012) would make changes “to correct and improve certain provisions of the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act,” the bill includes other provisions that are entirely unrelated to the AIA and that would dramatically impact patent term.

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