On January 7, 2019, the USPTO issued the long-awaited 2019 Revised Patent Subject Matter Eligibility Guidance ("2019 PEG"), which simplifies the examination procedure using the Alice/Mayo test that Examiners—and the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB)—will apply to determine subject-matter eligibility under 35 U.S.C. § 101. The 2019 PEG "aims to clarify" the Section 101 analysis by "extract[ing] and synthesiz[ing]" controlling Federal Circuit precedent defining unpatentable "abstract ideas" into a more workable, two-prong test. With this revised test, the Office hopes to "ensure that its more than 8500 patent examiners and administrative patent judges [can] apply the Alice/Mayo test in a manner that produces reasonably consistent and predictable results across applications, art units and technology fields," so that "inventors, businesses, and other patent stakeholders . . . [can] reliably and predictably determine what subject matter is patent-eligible."

Please join us as we discuss whether the 2019 PEG is meeting these laudable goals. Topics will include:

  • The nuts and bolts of the 2019 PEG, with flow charts comparing the old and new tests;
  • Related Examiner Training Materials, including Examples 37-42 of the 2019 PEG; and
  • An analysis of Office Actions and PTAB Decisions addressing the 2019 PEG in the first months.

Register: There is no charge to attend this program. Webinar access and dial-in information will be sent upon registration.

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Speakers:

Adriana Burgy

John Mulcahy

Moderators:

Asia: Gary Ma

Americas/EU: Anthony Tridico, Ph.D.

Date/Time:

Asia:

Thursday, March 7, 2019

7:30 a.m. India

10:00 a.m. China/Taiwan

11:00 a.m. Japan/Korea

Americas and Europe:

Tuesday, March 12, 2019

10:00 a.m. PDT

1:00 p.m. EDT

6:00 p.m. CEST