Why trade dress beats design patents
Likelihood of Confusion
MARCH 19, 2025
Republished by Blog Post PromoterVia the Diva of Design Law, Sarah Burstein: This is a good example of how trade dress provides broader protection than design patents.
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Likelihood of Confusion
MARCH 19, 2025
Republished by Blog Post PromoterVia the Diva of Design Law, Sarah Burstein: This is a good example of how trade dress provides broader protection than design patents.
Intellectual Property Law Blog
APRIL 18, 2023
Recent patent cases have made it more difficult to obtain utility patent protection for some of the functional aspects of computer software. Strategic use of design patents can be an important part of an overall patent strategy. Strategic use of design patents can be an important part of an overall patent strategy.
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JD Supra Law
NOVEMBER 1, 2024
Among the cauldron of Halloween patents, one particularly clever design stands out: a patented method for decorating pumpkins (and, technically, other fruits…but we’re not holding our breath for Halloween coconuts). Patent 6,855,224, an invention that makes it easy to transfer intricate designs onto pumpkin surfaces.
JD Supra Law
JANUARY 23, 2025
As we predicted in our 2023 report, 2024 was a banner year for design rights in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) agreed to consider en banc whether the long-standing design patent obviousness test required modification. and elsewhere. In last years report, we noted that the U.S. While the new.
Patent Trademark Blog
MARCH 13, 2025
How long does it take to get a design patent? On average, a design patent application can take about 16 months for the initial examination. Strip out the fast-tracked design applications from the equation, and the average wait time for non-expedited design applications would certainly be longer.
JD Supra Law
JANUARY 27, 2025
International Trade Commission (ITC) remains a pivotal forum for addressing intellectual property disputes under Section 337, particularly those involving design patents.
The IPKat
NOVEMBER 13, 2024
In a second of a series on AI and patents from our KatFriends at GJE, Kate Voller reports on a recent CIPA webinar with the EPO on how the EPO is leveraging AI tools in examination - with the key message of "assisting", not "replacing" examiners. The AmeriKat has the t-shirt.now what?
JD Supra Law
FEBRUARY 21, 2025
When there are fewer design elements in a design claim or when the individual elements of the design seem commonplace in isolation, it can be easy to overlook the inventive effort that went into developing a design. By: Quarles & Brady LLP
JD Supra Law
MARCH 25, 2025
In 2024, design patent law encountered a couple of major changes: the implementation of a new design patent bar, and the upending of decades of obviousness law under 35 U.S.C. Looking back at last years design patent issuance statistics, we now take the time to determine whether, if at all, the issuance numbers.
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.
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.
JD Supra Law
NOVEMBER 26, 2024
These two systems were designed to enable micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises. By: Jones Day
SpicyIP
DECEMBER 3, 2024
For more details, read on their announcement below: PatSeer Announces “PatAssist”, an AI Assistant Designed to Empower Each Step of Your Patent Research PatSeer , a global provider of AI-driven IP research and intelligence platform, is excited to announce the launch of its AI assistant “ PatAssist”.
SpicyIP
NOVEMBER 30, 2024
Diplomatic Conference to Conclude and Adopt a Design Law Treaty – Plenary Sessions. Having freelanced as a patent research analyst, he developed an interest in patent prosecution and in exploring the Patents Act through various interpretative approaches. Kartikeya is a second-year law student in the LL.B. Article 3.2
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.
JD Supra Law
SEPTEMBER 18, 2024
Federal Circuit and the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) reshaping the landscape of design patent law. These updates reflect a broader trend towards more flexible and inclusive IP protection, ensuring that innovators can better safeguard their relative designs. By: Bennett Jones LLP
Erik K Pelton
FEBRUARY 6, 2025
This patent protects the firms proprietary software, a groundbreaking tool designed to streamline docket and deadline management in the trademark application process. The newly patented software enhances efficiency, accuracy, and client service by automating key aspects of the trademark management process.
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.
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.
IP Watchdog
NOVEMBER 15, 2023
Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) today announced that a final rule will be published tomorrow, November 16, in the Federal Register implementing a design patent practitioner bar. A request for comments (RFC) was also published in October 22.
IP Watchdog
NOVEMBER 17, 2024
Design Patent #D1,050,634 from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Design Application #29888619, titled “Rope Throw Dog Toy” on September 18, 2024, and the patent was issued on November 5, 2024. And on Friday, November 15, I received my official patent in the mail.
IP Watchdog
MARCH 26, 2025
The flexible approach of In re Maatita to definiteness embodies the idea that designs can be depicted in a variety of ways while still being reasonably understood by the ordinary observer.
Patent Trademark Blog
MARCH 18, 2025
What are the right patents for Amazon sellers? Traditional patents that might work in the courts may not be the best type of IP protection for online sales on the e-commerce platform. Since Amazon uses their own legal system for adjudicating patent disputes , sellers need to know how to play the IP game Amazon’s way.
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.
Intellectual Property Law Blog
AUGUST 30, 2021
In recent years, AI patent activity has exponentially increased. The figure below shows the volume of public AI patent applications categorized by AI component in the U.S. AI patent activities by year. Inventors and patent attorneys often face the challenge of effectively protecting new AI technology development.
SpicyIP
NOVEMBER 9, 2024
Dr. Abolkheir labels the inherent fallacy within patent law as “ inventio ad hominem ” fallacy. Questioning the logical foundations of patent laws, he argues that defining ‘inventive step’ in terms of ‘non-obviousness’ shifts the focus of inquiry to the inventor, rather than the invention itself. Cipla Ltd. ,
JD Supra Law
JUNE 26, 2024
This CLE webinar will guide patent counsel on the Federal Circuit's recent decision in LKQ Corp. 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. GM Global Technology Operations L.L.C.
IP Close Up
DECEMBER 3, 2024
In recent years design patents have come to have a more vital role in the intellectual property landscape. Design patents protect the ornamental aspects of Continue reading
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.
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.
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.
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.
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. The federal court’s decision to reject this position has now harmonized the definition of an article of manufacture across multiple statutes.
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.
IP Law 360
NOVEMBER 19, 2024
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. Intellectual property law groups and Apple Inc. have recommended that the U.S.
JD Supra Law
DECEMBER 20, 2023
By: Linda Liu & Partners
SpicyIP
JULY 18, 2024
Controller of Patents and Designs , came down heavily on the IPO for its shoddy order rejecting the patent application filed by the appellant. The judgment raises serious concerns regarding the quality of functioning of the patent office. Order The Patent Controller issued a cryptic order rejecting the patent application.
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
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.
JD Supra Law
OCTOBER 31, 2024
The Unified Patent Court (UPC) is revolutionizing the way patents are enforced in Europe, and McDermott’s intellectual property (IP) team is here to help you navigate this dynamic landscape. Our Legal Lens on the Unified Patent Court newsletter is designed to keep patent holders and legal departments well-informed.
SpicyIP
MARCH 24, 2025
The Controller had rejected a patent application by Arcturus Therapeutics for the applicants inability to file its second written submission on time. Also, what does this tell about the quality of patent grant/ rejection orders? Her previous posts can be accessed here. Well take quick look at these pressing questions in this post.
IP Watchdog
NOVEMBER 12, 2024
The European Parliament asserts without the slightest ambiguity that “the body of EU law on the protection of intellectual and industrial property rights, including copyrights, trademarks, patents, designs and trade secrets, fully applies to virtual worlds”.
SpicyIP
SEPTEMBER 8, 2024
We are pleased to bring to you this sponsored post by PatSeer on the launch of their new Industrial Design Search solution. Utilizing computer vision model trained on millions of design images, it raises the bar for image search accuracy. Design searching has been stuck in sand for a long period. For more details, read on below.
SpicyIP
OCTOBER 21, 2024
Other Posts Labrats, Patents, and Section 3(i): Madras High Court Grants Patent for Antibody Production in Genetically Modified Non-human Animals Recently, the Madras High Court delivered a noteworthy ruling in Kymab Limited v. GSK sues Moderna for infringing its COVID-19 vaccine patents.
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