Dennis Crouch - Patently-O

Good news on patent prosecution timelines: First action wait times are down to 21 months, improving from 24 months mid-2025. Still working toward the 14-month target though. Read our latest analysis on Patently-O.

Patent applicants, take note: The wait from issue fee to grant has doubled to roughly 60 days. Read our latest analysis on Patently-O to understand what's driving this slowdown and what it means for your timeline.

New on Patently-O: A Federal Circuit decision clarifies property rights under the Trails Act. Does a railroad own the land beneath its corridor in fee? The court says yes - and neighbors' takings claims don't change that. Read the full analysis.

Two PTAB decisions with significant takeaways: CBD formulation claims held indefinite over dual-role ingredients, and Apple's phone instruction treated as printed matter. Read the latest analysis on Patently-O.

Supreme Court denies VirtaMove cert without holding for Tesla, Kahoot!, Intel, or FedEx. Plus new petitions on post-expiration royalties and section 101. Read the latest from Patently-O.

Throwback to ProFoot v. Merck: A classic case on functional claim language and structural limitations from the specification. See how courts narrow claims even when drafted functionally. A must-read from Patently-O's archives.

PTAB affirmance rates vary dramatically by rejection type. Section 101 rejections? 84% affirmed. Anticipation? Only 41%. New analysis from Patently-O reveals how technology center impacts these outcomes.

New on Patently-O: Can your computer corroborate your invention date? In Google v. Valtrus, the Federal Circuit rules that Word metadata can support an inventor's conception testimony - but a major § 101 issue still hangs over the case.

Section 101 is back to representing a fifth of PTAB appeals. New data from Patently-O shows the reversal spike has faded and the Board has nearly stopped raising 101 itself. Read the full analysis covering 2009-2026.

Throwback to a landmark Federal Circuit decision: Apple v. Samsung (2016) on why extra-record claim construction evidence is improper on appeal. A classic Patently-O post exploring the boundaries of appellate review in patent cases.

What will the Federal Circuit decide? Patently-O's AI predictions are in for five October arguments, including Samsung v. ITC and Taylor Made v. Costco. Read our blind forecasts and see how we did.

Brush up on patent history: A toothbrush case study reveals how claim drafting evolved over 170 years - from omnibus claims to modern innovations in replacement heads, software, and sensors. Read the latest on Patently-O.

New on Patently-O: An empirical breakdown of Rule 132 declarations filed in §101 cases. Out of 6,111 declarations since December, only 460 addressed eligibility - and examiners rejected them 66% of the time. Outside experts fared worst. See what the data reveals.

IPR filings plummeted to 450 petitions in FY2026 - just a third of the prior year. Institution decisions dropped to 860, and grant rates fell from 69% to 39%. Patently-O breaks down what this means for patent litigation strategy.

Exciting news for law students interested in patent litigation! The USPTO and IU Maurer are launching a PTAB Law School Moot Court Competition this Spring 2027. Compete before actual APJ panels with an in-person final in Alexandria. Learn more on Patently-O.

After Williamson, means-plus-function claims plummeted to just 3% of patents. But functional claiming didn't disappear - it surged to 74%. Patently-O investigates what changed and where function went in new data covering 8.75 million patents.

Did you know Jepson claims appear in just 0.03% of U.S. patents? Our latest analysis explores this rare claim format and other point-of-novelty approaches over 50 years. Learn what makes them unique and why they're so uncommon.

Chief Judge Moore had sharp words for J&M's counsel at oral argument, yet the panel may be leaning toward reversal on the "askewed angle" claim. Read the latest analysis on Patently-O about this surprising turn in J&M v. Kinze.

Federal Circuit grants mandamus in In re Google, moving USC v. Google from Judge Albright's Austin docket to N.D. Cal. - a significant development weeks after the judge's departure. Read the latest from Patently-O.

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New on Patently-O: A patentee can't ignore red flags about patent validity before filing suit. The Federal Circuit's Epic Tech v. Pen-Tech decision clarifies when pre-suit investigation is required.

FY2026 patent data is in: 315,825 utility grants, 26% continuing applications, 39% US-origin share, and cross-border inventor teams hitting a record 10.7%. See what the latest numbers reveal on Patently-O.

Third Circuit rules against Thomson Reuters in ROSS case: intermediate copying requires necessity, and fair use doesn't apply. The court leaves generative AI questions for another day. Read the latest analysis on Patently-O.

New on Patently-O: The Federal Circuit's latest ruling in Satius v. Samsung sidesteps indefiniteness to invalidate claims under enablement standards. When an alternative is physically impossible, is the claim still definite? The court says yes - but it still fails. Read the analysis.

Federal Circuit denies en banc review in Teva v. Lilly, leaving method claims to an antibody genus intact post-Amgen. Judge Dyk's dissent raises important questions about claim scope. Read the analysis on Patently-O.

New on Patently-O: The USPTO just released a SMED flowchart to help applicants navigate Subject Matter Eligibility Declarations. We break down what this means for your patent strategy and why disinterested declarants matter more than ever.

Crocs is asking the Supreme Court a tricky question: can one ITC determination start two different appeal clocks? The Federal Circuit said no - and dismissed Crocs' appeal as late. Read the latest from Patently-O on this procedural puzzle.

Federal Circuit affirms cancellation of Zentian's speech-recognition patent in a decision rejecting the argument that codewords aren't feature vectors. A Magritte moment in patent law. Read the latest from Patently-O.

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Brain-to-text technology is heating up. Texas, UCSF, Siemens, and a London startup are racing to patent mind reading capabilities - but older patents already cover key pieces. Who owns the future of neural interfaces? Read our latest on Patently-O.

New on Patently-O: Before the landmark Lowell v. Lewis decision, the 1812 Attorney General already rejected moral grounds for patent refusal. The patent issued just 10 days later. A fascinating pre-Lowell precedent.

RCE filings are climbing again - but it's not applicants filing more. The real culprit? More final rejections from the USPTO. Plus, the end of AFCP 2.0 is contributing to the surge. Read the latest analysis on Patently-O.

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New on Patently-O: Guest post by Paul R. Gugliuzza examining the Federal Circuit's latest jurisdictional expansion in Insulet v. EOFlow and how it sidesteps the Mottley well-pleaded complaint rule. A must-read for patent practitioners.

A Federal Circuit dismissal hinges on a missing judgment entry. In Heidary v. Amazon, the court found an appeal six months late - except a proper Rule 58 judgment was never entered, making it only 24 days late. Read the latest on Patently-O.

FY2026 utility grants held steady near 320k, but concerning trends emerged: continuing applications dropped to just 26% of grants, while US-origin share fell to 39%. New analysis on Patently-O.

The Supreme Court's patent docket is heating up. With 13 petitions and counting, major battles loom over IPR review, patent eligibility, damages, and claim scope. Read the latest analysis on Patently-O to see what's next.

A decade since the America Invents Act changed patent law forever. Patently-O takes a look back at the AIA's impact with a quick survey. What's your take on how it shaped the patent landscape?

Fortress Iron seeks Supreme Court review after losing two patents due to a missing coinventor. Interestingly, an 1868 case reached the opposite conclusion. Read about "The Missing Inventor Problem" on Patently-O.

Throwback to a classic Patently-O post: In re Lemay shows how a "list of lists" doesn't cut it as prior art disclosure. The Federal Circuit sided with Apple, reversing the PTAB. A must-read for patent prosecution strategy.

Federal Circuit affirms $3.2M fee award in Carnegie v. Fenix Diamonds based on objective baselessness. A closer look at how Octane Fitness shaped this important ruling on Patently-O.

The Federal Circuit just reined in the PTAB's interpretation of "flow barrier" in In re Incept, vacating an obviousness rejection. When does BRI go too far? Read our analysis on Patently-O.

The Federal Circuit extends Sanho to the grace period under 102(b)(1)(B). A private sale doesn't count as public disclosure, so a rival's later sale can still be prior art. Read the analysis on Patently-O.

A classic from the Patently-O archives: The Federal Circuit weighs in on case management tactics. Can courts force plaintiffs to drop patents from litigation? Revisit this important decision in patent strategy and discovery management.

Apple challenges the Supreme Court on a critical ITC question: does R&D count as domestic labor or capital under the domestic industry test? Patently-O explores this issue plus the ITC's tariff-era roots.

New on Patently-O: PTAB judges can now advise examiners at pre-appeal and appeal conferences under a Sept. 10 USPTO notice. We break down what changed, recusal implications, and PTA effects.

Federal Circuit clarifies Rule 19 boundaries in TexasLDPC v. Broadcom: sovereign immunity doesn't make a licensor a required party to its licensee's patent suit. Key win for patent litigation strategy. Read the full analysis on Patently-O.

Rare Breed's forced-reset trigger faces Federal Circuit scrutiny. We examine how a DOJ settlement sparked a sprawling 95-case MDL and whether the lower court's O2 Micro misstep will derail enforcement. New post on Patently-O.

New on Patently-O: Can a contract cap trade secret damages at a royalty rate? Versata v. Ford shows trade secret law differs from patent law - and courts are split on whether license agreements can limit recovery of a taker's gains.

Heading back to Vail! Join us January 6-9, 2027 at Grand Hyatt Vail for the IP CLE Conference. Dennis Crouch previews the must-attend patent, PTAB, and AI sessions. See what's on the agenda at Patently-O.