Did the word "couple" really need to be interpreted twice by the PTO, twice by the Federal Circuit, and once by the District Court? In today’s IPR PTABCast, Craige explains how the proper constructions of a single word can toggle a patent between validity and invalidity, and what you can do to avoid millions of dollars of litigation expenses by adding one clarifying word. 

Patent claims can be invalid if a prior art reference teaches almost all the claimed features and any missing features must “necessarily” be present when you follow the Prior art teachings.  

In this IPR PTABCast Craige explains how Southwire’s industry-changing process patent defeated the inherence attack but succumbed to the “obviousness” attack.

In today’s Briefing, Craige discusses six options that you can choose from when launching your idea into the market. If you want to safely maintain proprietary control and ownership of your idea, you need to understand the trade-offs and benefits of each of these 6 choices.

Craige reviews a case study of obviousness by tracing how common errors in lazy drafting and greedy claiming that lead inexorably to weak patents. In Owens Corning v. Fast felt, the federal Circuit shoots down a patent on gravure deposited nail tabs for roof shingles, even though the claims survived the inter partes review process.