Hot Topics in Patent Law

Director Robert Greene Sterne spoke on the “Hot Topics in Patent Law” panel at Practising Law Institute’s (PLI) Intellectual Property Law Institute 2023 in New York, NY.

This program was designed for general practitioners, intellectual property attorneys, in-house counsel and anyone who needed a comprehensive update on the major areas of intellectual property law.

Sterne also spoke on the “Hot Topics in Patent Law” panel at PLI’s Intellectual Property Law Institute 2023 in San Francisco, CA.

Panel Overview

Section 101 Developments (including legislative) 

• Brief review of state of patent eligibility law in the US, including examples of ineligible subject matter and threat to future innovation 
• Review the history of efforts to reform S. 101 post-Mayo/Myriad/Alice  
• Understand the Patent Eligibility Restoration Act of 2022 (and any 2023 alternatives or activity to date) 
• Discuss political dynamics and the path forward.  

Europe: The Unitary Patent and the new Unified Patent Court 

• Evaluate: June 1, it went live – what has happened? 
• How OPT-OUT is playing out  
• Determine if this is shaping up as the biggest global IP development since AIA in 2012 
• Assess whether the UPC is going to be pro-patent in practice 
• Understand whether it can meet its very ambitious 12 month deadlines? 
• Determine whether you should stay in the national courts? 
• Evaluate whether Central Division Revocations are the new PTAB of the EU 

Federal Circuit Update 

• Assess developments in CAFC case law 
• Analyze developments in appeals from district court infringement actions 
• Review developments in appeals from the PTO, including the TTAB 
• Evaluate significant trends in CAFC cases over the past year.