Prometheus Laboratories, Inc. v. Mayo Collaborative Services, 628 F.3d 1347 (Fed. Cir. 2010) (LOURIE, Rader & Bryson), on remand from 130 S. Ct. 3543 (2010), cert. granted, 180 L. Ed. 2d 844 (June 20, 2011). PrometheusLabMayo12172010.fc

MAJOR ISSUES: Section 101 patent eligible subject matter; Bilski; medical diagnostic claims

In 2009, before the Supreme Court’s Bilski decision on patent eligible subject matter and abstract ideas, see Bilski v. Kappos, 130 S. Ct. 3218, CPLRG 0015 (2010), the Federal Circuit held that medical diagnostic claims were to patent eligible subject matter. The Supreme Court remanded the case for reconsideration in light of Bilski.  The Federal Circuit reaffirmed its prior decision.  On June 20, 2011, the Supreme Court granted review, indicating the Supreme Court’s intent to address again issues on what constitutes patent eligible subject matter under Section 101, this time in regard to biomedical subject matter. Read CPLRG™ 0071

Research Corp. Technologies, Inc. v. Microsoft Corp., 627 F.3d 859 (Fed. Cir. 2010) (RADER, Newman & Plager) ResearchCorp12082010

In an early response to Bilski v. Kappos, 130 S. Ct. 3218, CPLRG 0015 (2010), the Federal Circuit, in an opinion by Chief Judge Rader, rebuffed a Section 101 challenge to claims in two patents to methods of “digital image halftoning.”  The court indicated a reluctance to find the kind of abstractness that the Supreme Court relied upon in Bilski to reject claims as ineligible subject matter under Section 101.  The court suggested that it would be more fruitful to apply specific standards of patentability, such as indefiniteness and lack of written description under 35 U.S.C. Section 112.

The struggle to make sense out of Bilski continued in subsequent Federal Circuit decisions.  See, e.g., Prometheus Laboratories, Inc. v. Mayo Collaborative Services, 628 F.3d 1347, CPLRG 0071 (Fed. Cir. 2010), on remand from 130 S. Ct. 3543 (2010), cert. granted, 180 L. Ed. 2d 844 (June 20, 2011); Ass’n for Molecular Pathology v. United States Patent and Trademark Office, CPLRG 0073 (Fed. Cir. July 29, 2011); Cybersource Corp. v. Retailed Decisions, Inc., CPLRG 0074 (Fed. Cir. Aug. 16, 2011). Read CPLRG™ 0072