PRG’s Summer and Fall Lineup Has the Patent Training You Need!

No matter where you are in your patent career, PRG’s Summer and Fall 2012 calendar of events can meet your professional needs for the highest quality patent education. Read on to see the full summer and fall line-up for PRG Summer and Fall courses, workshops, and Patent Bar Review dates!

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Big Savings on Workshop Tuition for Bar Review Students!

By taking PRG’s Bar Review Course (classroom or video) in 2011 or 2012, you’ve already made a commitment to your career as a patent practitioner.  We want to help you to take the next step by offering you a $500 savings off the regular tuition for our 2012 Winning Patents Workshop!

PRG’s Winning Patents Workshop is specifically designed for entry-level practitioners with up to two years of experience.  The Workshop teaches the skills necessary to produce better patent applications in the current world of patent case law.

We have updated the Winning Patents Workshop for 2012 so that it not only reflects the latest case law, but also reflects changes introduced by the AIA.

Sign up today for either our East Coast or West Coast Workshops to take advantage of this special tuition offer:

• July 17-20, 2012 — Washington, DC (Arlington, VA)
• July 31 – August 3, 2012 — Newport Beach, CA (Orange Country)

Use the links below to:

• Get more information about the Workshop and register online
• Register by fax or mail 

To obtain this special pricing when registering online, please enter your user name and password before selecting your Workshop.  If you register by fax or mail, we will apply your savings when we process your order.

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Summer and Fall 2012 Course Highlight – America Invents Act: Monumental Changes, the Consequences and the Unanswered Questions

Registration is now open for the Summer and Fall 2012 Advanced Courses Conferences, and one key course on the America Invents Act will be held at both conferences!  America Invents Act: Monumental Changes, the Consequences and the Unanswered Questions is a one-day course that provides an overview of the changes and consequences introduced by the America Invents Act (AIA).  As all of us in the patent profession know, the time has come for us to become intimately familiar with the new law, some portions of which have already become effective, others of which will become effective on September 16, 2012, and the remainder of which will become effective on March 16, 2013. The content of this course and its accompanying materials were created in an effort to assist patent professionals in acquiring a more or less profound understanding of the new law, its consequences, and the important issues raised by the changes but left unanswered.

This course will be held August 13, 2012 at the Summer Advanced Courses Conference and  October 20, 2012 at the Fall Advanced Courses Conference. After the jump, learn more about the content of this important course, and how to register!

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5 Sources For Patent Law News

Over at “Passing the Patent Bar with PRG“, the most recent post highlights five sources of patent and intellectual property law news:

Patent law professionals need to stay up-to-date on the quickly changing landscape of the intellectual property law field, but where can you get a concise daily summary of the biggest events about patent and IP law? Patent law blogs will certainly report on some of the patent-related news and important current issues, but these blogs usually focus on a single aspect of patent law, such as analysis of US patent cases or biotech/pharma patent cases.  Patent law professionals will need a more well-rounded source of daily IP law news, either in the form of a news feed for intellectual property law articles or a daily summary of major IP news events.  Here is a list of five reliable sources for quickly locating a broad range of current IP and patent-related news article.

To view the five patent law news resources, read the latest post on “Passing the Patent Bar with PRG”!

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Sign Up Now for PRG’s Fall Advanced Courses!

The America Invents Act is turning the patent world upside down. PRG is prepared. Are you?

The America Invents Act (AIA) is the most significant development in the patent world in a generation. If you don’t have a thorough understanding of how this legislation will affect your practice, then the risks to you, your firm or company, and your clients are great.  As always, PRG stands ready to help you with the best patent law courses in the world.  PRG’s Fall 2012 Advanced Courses Conference will be held from October 17-23, 2012 at the Hyatt Grand Champions Resort, Villas & Spa in Indian Wells, California.  We are offering an outstanding room rate of $169 at this beautiful, desert property.  All courses have been updated to reflect the many impacts of AIA, and we are also offering a special one-day course focused solely on the impacts of the AIA, which will be of interest to every patent practitioner.  Join us in California in October 2012 for the training you absolutely must have!

Hyatt Grand Champions Resort, Villas & Spa in Indian Wells, CA.

The course list is now available on the PRG website.  Courses available at the Fall 2012 Conference include:

• Chemical Patent Practice
• “Designing Around” Valid U.S. Patents
• Art and Science of Patent Searching
• Drafting Patent License Agreements
• Claim and Specification Drafting for a Single EPO/USPTO Patent Application
• Crafting & Drafting Winning Patents
• Patent Due Diligence in the AIA Era
• Federal Circuit Law (2010-2012)
• Post-Grant Patent Practice: Review, Reexamination, Reissue, and Supplemental Examination
• America Invents Act: Monumental Changes, the Consequences and the Unanswered Questions

Use the following links to:

• View and register for Fall Advanced Courses.
• Learn more about the Program Hotel.
• Learn about special Loyalty Program pricing at our 2012 Advanced Courses programs.

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Register Now For PRG’s Summer and Fall Advanced Courses!

Registration is now open for our Summer and Fall 2012 Advanced Courses conferences!

Summer – Washington, DC

On August 13, 2012, we’ll be offering a special one-day conference providing an overview of the changes and consequences introduced by the America Invents Act (AIA) at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City.  Our distinguished faculty will cover the latest insights and perspectives into the key provisions of this major legislation.

This is a course that every patent practitioner should take, in order to avoid the risks that the AIA poses in all areas of patent law.

Fall – Indian Wells, CA

Join us at the Hyatt Grand Champions Resort, Villas and Spa in Indian Wells, CA (Palm Springs) from October 17-23, 2012 for an amazing line-up of advanced coursesfor patent attorneys and agents, all of which have been updated to reflect the impacts of the AIA.  We’re offering 8 three-day courses, 1 two-day course, and our one-day course focusing solely on the impacts of the AIA.

PRG’s Advanced Courses provide an amazing value.  Our tuition rates have remained unchanged since 2005!  And if you attend every year, you’re actually paying less due to our Loyalty Program.

Get the training you need while enjoying this beautiful resort at a room rate of only $169 per night!

Hyatt Grand Champions Resort, Villas and Spa in Indian Wells, CA.

Use the links below to:

• Register for August online
• Register for October online
• Learn more about the Hyatt Grand Champions Resort, Villas and Spa

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Upcoming PRG Courses – Patent Administration: A Foundation for Success

PRG successfully introduced its Institute for Patent and Trademark Paralegals, Secretaries, and Administrators in 2010 – a Program specifically targeting the needs of the critical personnel who support the smooth and efficient operation of a patent practice.  In 2012, we are again offering Patent Administration: A Foundation for Success, which is the keystone course in the Program and one of our most popular offerings.

Patent Administration: A Foundation for Success, is a complete and thorough 3-day certificate program designed to provide patent paralegals, secretaries, and administrators with a firm understanding of the fundamentals of patent law, as well as practical tips and advice that can be applied on a day-to-day basis to save time and ensure success.

Patent Administration: A Foundation for Success covers the following key topics relating to patent prosecution support:

• Overview of U.S. patent law, including changes due to the America Invents Act (AIA)
• Patenting process at the USPTO
• Preparation and filing of applications and prosecution documents with the USPTO
• Introduction to Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) practice and filing
• Detailed discussion on patent research and document retrieval

Faculty will include John Tsavaris, Director of Professional Development and Special Counsel, Kenyon & Kenyon LLP and Catherine A. Van Houten, Manager of Docketing and IP Training, Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner, LLP.

The course will be held:

• August 13-15, 2012 in Washington, DC (Alexandria, VA)
• September 10-12, 2012 at the Concierge Conference Center in New York, NY

The Patent Administration course will be held in New York, NY and Washington, DC (Alexandria, VA).

Use the following links to:

• Register online.
• Register by fax or mail.

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Next Bar Review Course is June 18-22 in Boston!

We know how easy it is to procrastinate, especially when your work life is keeping you busy. But you can’t wait any longer to sign up for PRG’s next Bar Review Course!

Register today and join us in Boston on June 18-22 at the Revere Hotel Boston Common (formerly the Radisson Hotel Boston)!

Don’t miss out on this chance to take our industry-leading Bar Review Course and begin your efforts to prepare for the USPTO registration exam. We have already updated our course to reflect the latest changes to the registration exam, based on the new source materials announced by the USPTO earlier this year. These changes impact questions relating to Prioritized Examination, Change of Standard for Inter Partes Reexamination, and Appeals Practice.  Some of these changes reflect the impact of the America Invents Act (AIA).

Sign up today!

Use the links below to:

• Register online

• Register by fax or mail
  

PRG will be in Boston on June 18-22 at the Revere Hotel Boston Common.

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Advice from PRG Director Brad Buehler: “Help – My Exam Date is 2 Weeks Away and I’m Not Ready!!”

At the blog Passing the Patent Bar with PRG, Brad Buehler gives readers some tips on how they should prepare for the Patent Bar Exam if they’ve waited until the last minute:

Life definitely has a habit of getting away from us and no matter your plans and goals, sometimes things do go astray.  So what do you do if you are coming down to exam day and just haven’t been able to invest the time to properly prepare?  While I would never suggest waiting until the last minute, I know it does happen.  Here are some tips for your final weeks of cramming:

1. Take a full 100 question simulated exam ASAP!  This will allow you to get a feel for the exam and your timing.  Are you able to complete each 50-question section in the allotted 3 hours?  How comfortable are you with the material?  How did you score?  ExamWare™ will allow you to analyze your simulated exam results by topic, so you can see the topic distribution of the questions and your performance in each topic area.

Read the rest of Brad’s advice over at the latest post on Passing the Patent Bar with PRG!

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Upcoming PRG Workshops – Winning Patents Workshop

This July, Patent Resources Group is offering an exciting workshop for entry level patent level practitioners: the Winning Patents Workshop.  The Winning Patents Workshop has been updated to reflect relevant changes introduced by the AIA, including the entirely new §102 prior art criteria which become effective in March 2013.  The workshop is designed specifically for entry-level patent practitioners – those with up to two years of patent drafting and prosecution experience. Through four days of lectures and an interactive, small-group exercise on the fourth day, attendees will:

• Learn prudent practices for preparing and prosecuting applications that maximize the value of patents obtained for their clients.
• Develop an understanding of recent Federal Circuit case law, which resulted in claims being either unduly narrowly interpreted, and therefore held to be not infringed, or held to be invalid for lack of written description or enablement support due to improvidently-prepared and prosecuted applications.
• Appreciate what ought to be said – and not said – in the specifications, claims, and responses to Office actions, and why.
• Compose and prosecute a patent application in their chosen technology (chemical, mechanical/electrical, or biotechnology), based on a disclosure, prior art, and Office actions carefully created by PRG.
  • The Biotechnology exercise involves an invention of a method for preparing solid-phase viral glycoproteins for use in immunoassays to detect virus-specific antibodies.
  • The Chemical exercise is based on an invention of a method for the prevention of the adhesion of bacterial cells to surfaces in paper machine white water aqueous systems.
  • The Mechanical/Electrical exercise concerns an invention of a dual compartment vial for packaging medication having a short shelf life when stored in solution form.

 Sign up today for either our East Coast or West Coast Workshops:

• July 17-20, 2012 in Washington, DC (Alexandria, VA)
• July 31–August 3, 2012 at the Radisson Hotel Newport Beach in Newport Beach, CA

Use the links below to:

• Get more information about the Workshop and register online.
• Register by fax or mail 

The Winning Patents Workshop will be held in Newport Beach, CA and Washington, DC (Alexandria, VA).

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