Patently-O

FEBRUARY 23, 2022

In our new paper, The Truth About Design Patents , we debunk three widely held—but incorrect—views about U.S. design patents. Taken together, these myths paint a grim picture of design patents: Half of all design patent applications are rejected. Acquiring Design Patents.

Design Patent 134

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 134

JD Supra Law

JANUARY 23, 2025

The majority of 2024 was a quiet year for design patent cases at the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. The court issued five opinions involving U.S. Below we discuss the two substantive cases: LKQ Corporation v.

Design Patent 66

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 66

JD Supra Law

AUGUST 12, 2024

Kilpatrick partners Megan Bussey, Nicki Kennedy, and Michael Bertelson recently presented at the 20th annual KTIPS (Kilpatrick Townsend Intellectual Property Seminar) on the topic of “A New Era Dawns for Design Patent Validity - How the Federal Circuit Has Rewritten Design Patent Obviousness Law.” design patents.

Design Patent 103

Design Patent Design Designs Intellectual Property 103

JD Supra Law

JANUARY 28, 2025

Inter partes activity involving design patents at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) was relatively low in 2024. The PTAB rendered just two inter partes decisions involving design patents: Next Step Group, Inc. Deckers Outdoor Corp., IPR2024-00525, Paper 16 (PTAB Aug. 6, 2024) and Hangzhou Taihe Trading v.

Design Patent 66

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 66

Patently-O

JUNE 22, 2022

Evo’s design patent claims an “ ornamental design for a foldable bag ” as shown in the figures above. district court held the patent invalid as both functional and obvious; and also not infringed. Functionality : Design patents focus on ornamentality rather than utility. by Dennis Crouch.

Design Patent 141

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 141

Patently-O

NOVEMBER 15, 2023

by Dennis Crouch The USPTO is officially establishing a separate design patent practitioner bar with its final rule published on November 16, 2023 and effective January 2, 2024. Currently, a single patent bar governs registration for anyone seeking to practice before the USPTO in utility, plant, and design patent matters.

Design Patent 111

Design Patent Design Designs Graphic Design 111

Patently-O

MAY 21, 2024

by Dennis Crouch In a highly anticipated en banc decision, the Federal Circuit has overruled the longstanding Rosen-Durling test for assessing obviousness of design patents. Rejecting the argument that KSR did not implicate design patent obviousness, the court reasoned that 35 U.S.C. § GM Global Tech. Operations LLC , No.

Design Patent 119

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 119

IP Watchdog

DECEMBER 8, 2024

In 2007, I began attending sessions of the World Intellectual Property Organizations (WIPOs) Standing Committee on Trademarks, Industrial Designs, and Geographical Indications (SCT) in Geneva, Switzerland, to discuss the development of the Design Law Treaty.

Design 52

Design Designs Law Intellectual Property 52

Patently-O

JUNE 20, 2022

Guest Post by Sarah Burstein , Professor of Law at the University of Oklahoma College of Law. Companies associated with William Grecia have filed over a dozen cases alleging infringement of design patents for “animated graphical user interfaces.” The test for design patent infringement doesn’t change that.

Design Patent 98

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 98

JD Supra Law

OCTOBER 6, 2021

A recent decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has fundamentally altered the law on prior art anticipation for design patent applications. 4, 2021), the Federal Circuit reversed a decision by the USPTO’s Patent Trial and Appeal…. In this decision, captioned In re: SurgiSil, L.L.P.

Design Patent 98

Design Patent Design Designs Patent Law 98

JD Supra Law

MAY 22, 2024

GM Global Technology Operations LLC, overturning the long-standing obviousness test for design patents. On May 21, 2024, the Federal Circuit issued an en banc decision (full court, instead of the typical three-judge panel) in LKQ Corp. By: Wolf, Greenfield & Sacks, P.C.

Design Patent 107

Design Patent Design Designs Patent Law 107

Patently-O

MAY 24, 2024

GM decision, the USPTO issued a memorandum to its examiners providing updated guidance and examination instructions in light of the court’s overturning of the long-standing Rosen-Durling test for determining obviousness of design patents. The memo notes that existing guidance and case law in this area is still applicable.

Design Patent 130

Design Patent Design Designs Art 130

JD Supra Law

AUGUST 12, 2024

Until now, case law has defined an “article of manufacture” solely for purposes of damages in design patent infringement actions.

Design Patent 105

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 105

IP Law 360

NOVEMBER 19, 2024

Intellectual property law groups and Apple Inc. Patent and Trademark Office allow design patents on computer icons shown using new technologies like holograms and augmented reality, saying a rule limiting protection to images on display screens is outdated. have recommended that the U.S.

Design Patent 98

Design Patent Design Designs Intellectual Property Law 98

JD Supra Law

JUNE 26, 2024

May 21, 2024) and its implications for design patents. The panel will discuss the new test for obviousness and what hurdles it will present for design patents. The panel will offer guidance addressing obviousness issues in design patents. GM Global Technology Operations L.L.C. By: Strafford

Design Patent 104

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 104

The IP Law Blog

FEBRUARY 2, 2023

Design patents and utility patents are two different things. Design patents protect ornamental designs, such as the shape of a perfume bottle or the design on flatware. To be patentable, however, both designs and functional inventions must satisfy two requirements.

Design Patent 98

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 98

IP Law 360

NOVEMBER 22, 2024

Delegates from the world's major intellectual property groups signed a treaty Friday that would, if approved, establish new rules to facilitate the filing of design patents.

Design Patent 98

Design Patent Design Designs Intellectual Property 98

JD Supra Law

MAY 24, 2024

On May 21, 2024, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issued an en banc opinion overruling the long-standing Rosen-Durling test for obviousness of design patents in favor of the analytical framework used for utility patents outlined in Graham v. John Deere Co. and KSR Int’l Co. Teleflex Inc. LKQ Corporation et al.

Design Patent 108

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 108

IP Law 360

JUNE 3, 2024

The Federal Circuit's decision discarding long-standing tests for proving that a design patent is invalid as obvious means the world has changed for patent examiners and applicants, attorneys said, and the new standard could lead to more design patent applications being turned down.

Design Patent 98

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 98

JD Supra Law

FEBRUARY 23, 2023

In 2022, the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) did not issue any final written decisions involving design patents. However, it did issue three decisions granting review of challenged design patents and three decisions denying review of challenged design patents, maintaining 2021’s design patent institution rate of 50%.

Design Patent 98

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 98

JD Supra Law

JUNE 10, 2022

A design patent protects a new, original, ornamental design for an article of manufacture. Ornamental” means that the design is purely decorative; the patentability is based on its visual aspects. 35 USC section 171. By: Weintraub Tobin

Design Patent 98

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 98

JD Supra Law

SEPTEMBER 20, 2023

GM Global Technology Operations LLC has brought attention to the ongoing debate surrounding design patent law, particularly with respect to the Rosen-Durling test for design patent obviousness. By: ArentFox Schiff

Design Patent 110

Design Patent Design Designs Technology 110

IP Law 360

MAY 21, 2024

The full Federal Circuit on Tuesday overruled long-standing tests for proving that design patents are invalid as obvious, finding that the rules are "improperly rigid" and holding that the obviousness test for utility patents should be used instead.

Design Patent 105

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 105

JD Supra Law

FEBRUARY 14, 2023

Utility patents are for functional inventions. Design patents protect the look of something functional, regardless of whether the functional aspects are new. Because of this, a popular use of design patents is to protect the outside of common consumer products. What’s more common than the written word?

Design Patent 98

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 98

JD Supra Law

MARCH 20, 2025

The landscape of design patent law has recently evolved with the introduction of a new standard for determining obviousness. For decades, theRosen-Durlingtest was used to assess obviousness of design patents. By: Womble Bond Dickinson

Design Patent 61

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 61

JD Supra Law

DECEMBER 12, 2023

Last month, the United States Patent and Trademark Office published Supplemental Guidance for examination of design patent applications related to computer-generated electronic images.

Design Patent 112

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 112

JD Supra Law

MAY 18, 2023

The US Patent and Trademark Office announced a notice of proposed rulemaking on May 16 that would create a separate design patent bar. The proposed changes would effectively expand the admission criteria for those who practice in design patent cases before the USPTO. By: Morgan Lewis

Design Patent 98

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 98

JD Supra Law

FEBRUARY 28, 2023

design patents: three precedential opinions and three unprecedential opinions. Unlike 2021 (where the two precedential opinions on design patents issued by the Federal Circuit both involved appeals that originated at the Patent Office), all three precedential opinions in 2022 involved appeals that originated from district courts.

Design Patent 95

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 95

JD Supra Law

OCTOBER 12, 2021

The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit’s recent decision on an appeal from the Patent Trial and Appeal Board to limit prior art for design patent applications to only analogous fields may make it easier for applicants to obtain design patents and more difficult for challengers to invalidate them.

Design Patent 103

Design Patent Art Design Designs 103

JD Supra Law

FEBRUARY 28, 2023

Last year, in our inaugural issue of “The Year in Review,” we reported that since the landmark jury verdict in the IP litigation between Apple and Samsung in 2012, which awarded more than $1B to Apple for infringement of several design patents, interest in design patents grew exponentially.

Design Patent 98

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 98

JD Supra Law

MARCH 25, 2022

Design patents are no longer the poor cousin in the world of patents. Today they’re taking their seat at the table with utility patents, copyrights, and trademarks as part of an overall intellectual property protection strategy. By: Erise IP

Design Patent 101

Design Patent Design Designs Intellectual Property 101

JD Supra Law

FEBRUARY 28, 2023

Last year, in our inaugural issue of “The Year in Review,” we reported that since the landmark jury verdict in the IP litigation between Apple and Samsung in 2012, which awarded more than $1B to Apple for infringement of several design patents, interest in design patents grew exponentially.

Design Patent 98

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 98

IP Law 360

APRIL 7, 2023

Various players in the world of replacement auto parts have urged the full Federal Circuit to reconsider the test used for determining design patents are invalid as obvious, arguing the court is treating design patents more like trademarks than utility patents, thus making invalidations nearly impossible.

Design Patent 98

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 98

JD Supra Law

MARCH 18, 2022

Earlier this month, ten of the world’s largest companies were accused of infringing design patents claiming animated graphical user interfaces (GUIs). These assertions were made in addition to at least ten other lawsuits filed since September 2021 asserting animated GUI design patents. By: Quarles & Brady LLP

Design Patent 98

Design Patent Design Designs Patent Infringement 98

JD Supra Law

APRIL 29, 2022

Yvon Chouinard, Let My People Go Surfing: The Education of a Reluctant Businessman- In a design patent application, “the subject matter which is claimed is the design embodied in or applied to an article of manufacture (or portion thereof) and not the article itself.”. “The more you know, the less you need.” ?

Design Patent 98

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 98

JD Supra Law

FEBRUARY 23, 2022

When you review the invention disclosure, you notice that the design is ornamental, for example, a pattern, on an article such as a chair. You want to file a patent application to protect the design. Can you file a design patent application? The answer is YES. By: International Lawyers Network

Patent Application 96

Patent Application Design Patent Design Designs 96

JD Supra Law

JUNE 14, 2022

design patents continue to grow in popularity. Although 2021 saw a slight downtick in the number of issued design patents compared to the previous two years—most likely caused by lower filings during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic—the number of U.S. By: Quarles & Brady LLP

Design Patent 97

Design Patent Design Designs Patent 97