The USPTO recently released a set of examples for evaluating claims under 35 U.S.C. § 101 in view of Alice Corp. Pty. Ltd. v. CLS Bank Int’l., 134 S.Ct. 2347 (2014). To the bane of many patent prosecutors in the business methods, financial, and software‑related arts, patent examiners have been applying a loose interpretation of this decision to reject entire classes of patent applications. With the release of these examples, however, the tide may begin to turn.
