In May 2024, the USPTO issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking suggesting changes to terminal disclaimer practices. Believed to stifle competition and lead to infringement cases involving too many similar patents, a patent subject to a terminal disclaimer would no longer be enforceable if a final, non-appealable decision has been made by a federal court of the USPTO that any one claim in the first patent is invalid under 35 U.S.C. § 102 or 103, or if a statutory disclaimer of a claim is filed for the first patent after any challenge to that claim has been made. Such a change necessarily means the increasing need to understand and agilely navigate rules against obviousness type double patenting for in-house counsel.

• Learn of latest developments on law such as In re Cellect to ensure patent strategies align with these principles
• Assess your patent portfolio in order to determine and identify potential issues of ODP to mitigate risk and optimize IP protection
• Explore the potential of fostering a culture of innovation within the business, all while adhering to patent standards, to effectively safeguard assets and maintain a competitive edge