How do you conduct patent due dilligence in the AIA Era?

Do you want to learn how the America Invents Act (AIA) and recent decisions of the Supreme Court and Federal Circuit have affected the due diligence process?  Then you should attend the course Patent Due Diligence in the AIA Era at the Spring 2013 Advanced Courses Program from April 11-13, 2013 at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress in Orlando, Florida. The three faculty members, Bryan Diner, Anthony Gutowski, and Andrew Holtman, have many years of experience in IP practice and expertise in several different areas of technology.  These faculty members have also collectively participated in over 100 due diligence evaluations.

The lively and entertaining presentation covers every phase of a due diligence investigation.  During the course, you will interact with instructors and other students while exploring case-study examples and lecture topics on a wide range of issues:

• common legal-interest agreements
• claim construction
• freedom to operate
• validity assessments
• inequitable conduct
• patent eligibility, and
• ownership/transferability

The knowledge you’ll gain from this course will enable you to avoid due diligence pitfalls, while more effectively assessing and managing risks endemic in business transactions involving complex IP rights and issues.

Course Details for the Art and Science of Patent Searching

• Dates: April 11-13, 2013
• Course Times:8:15-11:30; 1:30-4:45 (Thurs-Fri); 8:15-11:30 (Sat)
• Projected CLE: 15.0 hours
• Projected Ethics Credit: 2.0 hours
• Course Materials:  You will receive a thorough course book, chock full of notes, examples, and case law as part of your course material.

About the Spring 2013 Advanced Courses

The Spring 2013 Advanced Courses Program will be held April 7-13, 2013 at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress in Orlando, Florida, and 15 excellent patent law courses will be offered, including thirteen 3-day courses and two 1-day courses, including the blockbuster course, America Invents Act: Monumental Changes, the Consequences and the Unanswered Questions.  For PRG attendees, we are offering an incredible room rate of $199.00 (single or double, plus tax) at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress.  This room rate is only available through March 15, 2013, so register soon!

Use the links below to:

• Learn more about  the “Patent Due Diligence in the AIA Era” course.
• Register by fax or mail.
• Learn more about other Spring 2013 Advanced Courses.

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Learn the Best Methods for Drafting Patent License Agreements in Spring 2013!

If you want to get concrete patent drafting and negotiating advice with precise references to existing law, then attend the comprehensive Drafting Patent License Agreements course at the Spring 2013 Advanced Courses Program from April 11-13, 2013 at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress in Orlando, Florida. Faculty members for this course include patent law experts Patrick O’Reilley, Brian Kacedon, and William Pratt. The course lays the groundwork for a clause-by-clause examination of all significant elements of the patent licensing agreement. The practical questions always focused on are how and whether each element is sufficient to serve the business needs of the parties while remaining legally viable. The main components of typical licensing agreements, from the opening part through the execution and authentication provisions, are examined in detail. Practical, hypothetical illustrative examples are used, often in workshop form, with carefully crafted problem handouts distributed to the attendees during the course.

Throughout the course, the faculty members emphasize achieving legally satisfactory drafting results by recognizing the logical principles that underlie the job to be done. Sample forms are used to explain the practical considerations upon which they are based. Law and precedent are presented in terms that make clear the legal reasoning behind recommended drafting approaches. Legal ethics in license negotiations will be presented during the afternoon session on Day 2 and in misuse issues during the morning session of Day 3, as currently estimated.

Course Details for the Art and Science of Patent Searching

• Dates: April 11-13, 2013
• Course Times:8:15-11:30; 1:30-4:45 (Thurs-Fri); 8:15-11:30 (Sat)
• Projected CLE: 15.0 hours
• Projected Ethics Credit: 2.0 hours
• Course Materials:  The text for the course is the Seventh Edition of the classic, Drafting Patent License Agreements (BNA), by Brian G. Brunsvold, D. Patrick O’Reilley and D. Brian Kacedon.  This Seventh Edition includes a computer disk, which has a set of form paragraphs that can be incorporated, with careful editing, into a license agreement to be prepared by the course attendee.  The hardcopy edition of the course text will be given to each attendee at the course.  The volume containing the printed slides that will be used throughout the lectures will also be provided at the course; this volume will include extensive license drafting workshop materials and Justice Department licensing guidelines.

About the Spring 2013 Advanced Courses

The Spring 2013 Advanced Courses Program will be held April 7-13, 2013 at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress in Orlando, Florida, and 15 excellent patent law courses will be offered, including thirteen 3-day courses and two 1-day seminars, including the blockbuster course, America Invents Act: Monumental Changes, the Consequences and the Unanswered Questions.  For PRG attendees, we are offering an incredible room rate of $199.00 (single or double, plus tax) at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress.

Use the links below to:

• Learn more about  the “Drafting Patent License Agreements” course.
• Register by fax or mail.
• Learn more about other Spring 2013 Advanced Courses.

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Register by February 6 to Save on Course Tuition!

PRG’s 2013 Annual Spring Advanced Courses Program is coming up soon in Orlando, Florida from April 7-13, 2013 at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress.

We know you’ve been thinking about registering, so don’t delay any longer!  Sign up for your courses by February 6, 2013 and you’ll save $100 on each 3-day course (and pay the same tuition rates that we’ve been offering since 2005)!  You’ll also get special pricing on our one-day courses — $795 per course instead of $995 — if you sign up for a 3-day course at this same Program.

Register today to take advantage of these great savings!

Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress.

Use the links below to:

• Register by fax or mail
• Check out our full line-up of Spring 2013 Advanced Courses and register online

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Obtain the Skills for “Designing Around” Valid U.S. Patents in Spring 2013!

Learn how to assist your clients in developing competitive, non-infringing products by attending the extremely popular “Designing Around” Valid U.S. Patents course at the Spring 2013 Advanced Courses Program from April 7-9, 2013 at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress in Orlando, Florida.  PRG has offered the “Designing Around” Valid U.S. Patents course for 15 years, and it remains one of the most popular course offerings. Instructors for this course include esteemed patent law experts Patrick Burns, John Pinkerton, Patricia Prior, and Robert Turner.  This course will show practitioners representing potential infringers how to counsel competitive product design under the guidance of Federal Circuit and Supreme Court cases, which will almost always be viewed as effective “designing around.”

This course will explore the current condition of claim construction in detail and explain how competitors can use it to their advantage, even when the claims on their face are literally infringed. Four cookbooks are provided, covering:

• literal infringement.
• infringement under the doctrine of equivalents.
• infringement of means plus function claim elements.
• prosecution history estoppel.

Using and following these cookbooks, which distill opinions by the Federal Circuit and the Supreme Court in cases from Pennwalt to Festo IX, any patent practitioner can counsel his or her client on how to “design around” the patented invention with almost certain impunity – a design that appropriates the patented invention and that, prior to Pennwalt and its progeny, would have been held an infringement rather than the socially desirable activity of “designing around.”

To ensure no confusion on anyone’s part in this exercise, the faculty and students will go through several claim construction exercises and compare their conclusions with the Federal Circuit’s claim construction in actual cases. A mock design around exercise will also be presented. The demonstration considers client, marketing and engineering perspectives, in addition to legal analysis.

Course Details for the Art and Science of Patent Searching

• Dates: April 7-9, 2013
• Course Times: 8:15-11:30; 1:30-4:45 (Sun-Mon); 8:15-11:30 (Tues)
• Projected CLE: 15.0 hours
• Projected Ethics Credit: 2.0 hours
• Course Materials: The two-volume text for “Designing Around” Valid U.S. Patents is authored by the distinguished course faculty, each of whom has extensive successful litigation, prosecution and counseling experience.

About the Spring 2013 Advanced Courses

The Spring 2013 Advanced Courses Program will be held April 7-13, 2013 at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress in Orlando, Florida, and 15 excellent patent law courses will be offered, including thirteen 3-day courses and two 1-day seminars, including the blockbuster course, America Invents Act: Monumental Changes, the Consequences and the Unanswered Questions.  Now is the time to register for this Program, since you can save $100 on any 3-day course by registering now through February 6, 2013. For PRG attendees, we are offering an incredible room rate of $199.00 (single or double, plus tax) at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress.

Use the links below to:

• Learn more about  the “Designing Around” Valid U.S. Patents course and register online.
• Register by fax or mail.
• Learn more about other Spring 2013 Advanced Courses.

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Get the Latest on the European Unitary Patent and Unified Court!

Presented in partnership with Management Forum.

PRG’s 2013 Annual Spring Advanced Courses Program is coming up soon in Orlando, Florida from April 7-13, 2013 at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress.

And we are excited to announce that, in partnership with Management Forum, we are offering a new 1-day course at this program on April 10 entitled, “The European Unitary Patent and Unified Court: What Counsel Needs to Know”!  The EU Parliament is expected to conclude the negotiations imminently on the EU’s future unitary patent system.  The new single patent litigation system proposed, embodied in the Unified Patent Court, will have exclusive competence in respect of actions relating to the validity or infringement of a European unitary patent.  This course will cover how the new system will work and how to formulate strategies for working with — or without — it.  You’ll learn what U.S. practitioners need to know about European practice in this new environment.

Use the links below to:

• Learn more about “The European Unitary Patent and Unified Court” course and register online
• Register by fax or mail
• Check out our full line-up of Spring 2013 Advanced Courses

And don’t forget — if you register by February 6, 2013, you’ll save $100 on each 3-day course (and pay the same tuition rates that we’ve been offering since 2005)!  You’ll also get special pricing on our one-day courses if you sign up for a 3-day course at this same program.

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The Magalog for PRG’s Spring 2013 Advanced Courses Program is now Available!

The Magalog for Spring 2013 Advanced Courses Program is now available online! The Spring 2013 Advanced Courses Program will be held April 7-13, 2013 at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress in Orlando, Florida, and 15 excellent patent law courses will be offered, including thirteen 3-day courses and two 1-day seminars, including the blockbuster course, America Invents Act: Monumental Changes, the Consequences and the Unanswered Questions.  Learn all the details about these excellent courses that cover a variety of highly relevant topics on patent law, business strategies, and patent searching.

The Magalog for the Spring 2013 Advanced Courses Program describes the patent law courses available April 7-13, 2013.

Now is the time to register for this Program, since you can save $100 on any 3-day course by registering now through February 6, 2013. For PRG attendees, we are offering an incredible room rate of $199.00 (single or double, plus tax) at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress.

Use the links below to:

• Register by fax or mail.
• Learn more about Spring 2013 Advanced Courses and register online.

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New Spring 2013 Course: What Counsel Needs to Know about The European Unitary Patent and Unified Court!

We are pleased to announce a new one-day seminar, presented jointly by Management Forum and Patent Resources Group, that will cover what all patent attorneys need to know about the European Unitary Patent and Unified Court. This ground-breaking seminar will be held at the Spring 2013 Advanced Courses Program on April 10, 2013 at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress in Orlando, Florida.

On June 29, 2012, the European Council decided on the seat of the central division of the new Unified Patent Court.  The EU Parliament is expected to conclude the negotiations imminently on the EU’s future unitary patent system.  The new single patent litigation system proposed, embodied in the Unified Patent Court, will have exclusive competence in respect of actions relating to the validity or infringement of a European unitary patent.  It is essential for all patent practitioners to know how this new system will work and how to formulate strategies for working with – or without – it.  This course provides an essential guide to all these issues, presented by leading practitioners from the UK and Germany.

The course includes presentation of simple decision and timing flowcharts intended for re-use by attendees in their own presentations to colleagues, for efficient and professional dissemination of know-how across businesses.

Course Details for The European Unitary Patent and Unified Court: What Counsel Needs to Know

• Dates: April  10, 2013
• Course Times: 8:15-11:45; 1:45-5:00 (Wed)
• Projected CLE: 6.5 hours
• Course Materials: Attendees will receive a course material folder containing documentation provided by the speakers.  They will also receive a CD containing Powerpoint presentations which can be used for future reference.

About the Spring 2013 Advanced Courses

The Spring 2013 Advanced Courses Program will be held April 7-13, 2013 at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress in Orlando, Florida, and 15 excellent patent law courses will be offered, including thirteen 3-day courses and two 1-day seminars, including the blockbuster course, America Invents Act: Monumental Changes, the Consequences and the Unanswered Questions.  Now is the time to register for this Program, since you can save $100 on any 3-day course by registering now through February 6, 2013. For PRG attendees, we are offering an incredible room rate of $199.00 (single or double, plus tax) at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress.

Use the links below to:

• Learn more about The European Unitary Patent and Unified Court: What Counsel Needs to Know and register online.
• Register by fax or mail.
• Learn more about other Spring 2013 Advanced Courses.

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Register Now and Save on PRG’s Spring 2013 Advanced Courses!

PRG’s 2013 Annual Spring Advanced Courses Program is coming up soon in Orlando, Florida from April 7-13, 2013 at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress.

Act now — if you register by February 6, 2013, you’ll save $100 on each 3-day course (and pay the same tuition rates that we’ve been offering since 2005)!  You’ll also get special pricing on our one-day courses if you sign up for a 3-day course at this same program.

Sign up today to ensure you take advantage of the best pricing!  We’re offering 15 great advanced patent law courses, which have been updated to reflect the impacts of the AIA.  Plus, we’re offering an amazing room rate of $199 per night at a world-class resort.

So check out our Spring 2013 Advanced Courses line-up and register today!

Use the links below to:

• Register by fax or mail
• Register online or learn more about PRG’s Spring 2013 Advanced Courses Program

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Perfect Your Chemical Patent Practice in Spring 2013!

Would you like to become well-versed on how chemical claims are constructed and construed? Then you should attend our highly-acclaimed, comprehensive Chemical Patent Practice course at the Spring 2013 Advanced Courses Program from April 7-9, 2013 at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress in Orlando, Florida. Instructors of this course have over 100 years of collective experience across the complete spectrum of chemical practice, and this course will be taught by chemical patent law experts Tom Irving, Paul Browning, Karen Cochran, Deborah Herzfeld, and Jill MacAlpine.

This up-to-the-minute course teaches the chemical patent practitioner how to use fundamentally sound principles to prepare and prosecute a United States chemical patent application in a conservative way, and in view of all of the opportunities and pitfalls afforded by the AIA, to enhance such possibilities as:

• obtaining broad claim construction for literal infringement purposes, particularly by avoiding “vile” language (i.e., lightning rods for noninfringement and §112, para. 2 invalidity) that is best described as patent profanity;
• utilizing the doctrine of equivalents to the extent that the doctrine still exists;
• surviving Festo;
• destroying, not rebutting, a defective prima facie case of obviousness in our current post-KSR world, including illustrations from several real U.S. patents prosecuted by a faculty member;
• obtaining the broadest possible claims by avoiding too many and unduly narrow limitations;
• obtaining claims that will be directly and literally infringed by competitors rather than by customers;
• proving literal infringement of claims in litigation;
• obtaining claims infringed by “downstream” infringers;
• preparing and prosecuting the application to avoid inequitable conduct in view of the Federal Circuit’s en banc decision in Therasense and progeny thereof, and the impact of the AIA supplemental examination procedure that went into effect Sept. 16, 2012; and
• understanding the implications of the various provisions and effective dates of the America Invents Act (AIA), particularly as they relate to filing strategies in and around the rapidly approaching March 16, 2013 date when the first inventor to file provisions take effect.

And don’t be misled into thinking that this course is applicable only to patent prosecutors. The principles taught will greatly help those involved with prelitigations, litigations, Orange Book listings, due diligences and analysis of third-party patents for validity, infringement, and enforceability issues.

Course Details for the Art and Science of Patent Searching

• Dates: April 7-9, 2013
• Course Times: 8:15-11:30; 1:30-4:45 (Sun-Mon); 8:15-11:30 (Tues)
• Projected CLE: 15.0 hours
• Projected Ethics Credit: 2.0 hours
• Course Materials: Chemical Patent Law, written and continually updated by the Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner faculty, with the invaluable assistance of editor Stacy D. Lewis, will be provided to attendees at the course. This treatise covers virtually every situation that can arise in the preparation and prosecution of a chemical patent application.  The treatise underwent a complete overhaul in the aftermath of the enactment of the AIA to provide completely updated materials to the course attendees. Slides will also be provided in book form to attendees on the first day of class.

About the Spring 2013 Advanced Courses

The Spring 2013 Advanced Courses Program will be held April 7-13, 2013 at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress in Orlando, Florida, and 14 excellent patent law courses will be offered, including thirteen 3-day courses and the 1-day blockbuster course, America Invents Act: Monumental Changes, the Consequences and the Unanswered Questions.  Now is the time to register for this Program, since you can save $100 on any 3-day course by registering now through February 6, 2013. For PRG attendees, we are offering an incredible room rate of $199.00 (single or double, plus tax) at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress.

Use the links below to:

• Learn more about Chemical Patent Practice and register online.
• Register by fax or mail.
• Learn more about other Spring 2013 Advanced Courses.

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Learn the Art and Science of Patent Searching in Spring 2013!

Are you a professional in the patent law field who wants to master a systematic process for performing prior art searches with greater efficiency and precision? You can achieve this goal by attending the world-renowned course The Art and Science of Patent Searching, which will be held at the Spring 2013 Advanced Courses Program from April 7-9, 2013 at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress in Orlando, Florida. This course will be taught by patent search experts Jonathan Skovholt and Brian Thurmond, and it is designed to benefit a broad audience including novice searchers, seasoned patent practitioners, and search professionals. The course also provides unbiased, detailed information concerning the latest databases and tools of the trade. Expert tips from search professionals are provided to enable high-level patent research through proper scoping, structuring, and performance of the search. Patent practitioners will recognize that a robust understanding of the prior art is a vital part of the patent process, particularly in view of accelerated examination demands and the America Invents Act.

The course additionally includes an optional Patent Searching Workshop, which gives attendees the opportunity to practice hands-on patent searching alongside the course instructors. The faculty will work with the attendees to answer questions and provide guidance as they execute their searches in real time. The Workshop is structured to test each attendee’s retention of the concepts covered in the course as they put their training to use in several sample search projects. Attendees will be provided with multiple sample disclosures, encompassing a wide variety of technologies, on which they will base their search. The informal, lecture-free setting will allow each attendee to work independently, but in close proximity to an instructor.  The instructors will be able to provide assistance with any of the major patent search engines. The attendees will be guided through scoping the search, performing the search and analyzing their results. Answer keys will be provided at the end of the Workshop so that participants may gauge their progress and have a reference to use for additional practice following the class.

Course Details for the Art and Science of Patent Searching

• Dates: April 7-9, 2013
• Course Times: 8:15-11:30; 1:30-4:45 (Sun-Mon); 8:15-11:30 (Tues). Workshop: 1:30-4:45 (Tues)
• Projected CLE: 15.0 hours
• Course Materials: The text for the course is Art & Science of Patent Searching – Patentability, Validity & Infringement, edited by Matthew Rodgers, Long Nguyen, and David Hunt.

About the Spring 2013 Advanced Courses

The Spring 2013 Advanced Courses Program will be held April 7-13, 2013 at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress in Orlando, Florida, and 14 excellent patent law courses will be offered, including thirteen 3-day courses and the 1-day blockbuster course, America Invents Act: Monumental Changes, the Consequences and the Unanswered Questions.  Now is the time to register for this Program, since you can save $100 on any 3-day course by registering now through February 6, 2013. For PRG attendees, we are offering an incredible room rate of $199.00 (single or double, plus tax) at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress.

Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress.

Use the links below to:

• Learn more about the Art and Science of Patent Searching and register online.
• Register by fax or mail.
• Learn more about other Spring 2013 Advanced Courses.

Read Full Post »