On October 6, 2021, Voyager Therapeutics and Pfizer entered into a license option agreement, which allows Pfizer to exercise options to license Voyager’s adeno-associated virus (AAV) capsids for gene therapies.
Voyager is a Massachusetts-based company developing AAV-based gene therapies. The
Continue Reading Pfizer and Voyager Agree to Develop Neurologic and Cardiovascular Gene Therapies Valued at up to $630 Million
Last month, in the case In re: MaxPower Semiconductor, Inc., the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (“the CAFC”) dismissed an appeal by MaxPower Semiconductor, Inc. (“MaxPower”) of four determinations to institute inter partes review (“IPR”) of four of
Continue Reading Judge O’Malley Dissents from the Majority on the Enforceability of Arbitration Agreements in IPR Proceedings
The U.K. released a National AI Strategy with a ten-year plan to make Britain a global AI superpower in our new age of artificial intelligence. The Strategy intends to “signal to the world [the U.K.’s] intention to build the most
Continue Reading The U.K. National AI Strategy Begins with Consultations on Copyright, Patent, and Data Protection Regime
On September 16, 2021, eleven congressional leaders (“the Signors”) sent a letter to Andrew Hirshfeld, the acting director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”), requesting the USPTO to reevaluate the Patent Trial and Appeal Board’s (“PTAB”) view
Continue Reading Key Members of Congress Urge USPTO to Curtail Discretionary Denials of IPR Petitions to Help Lower Drug Costs by Breaking Patent Thickets
On September 16, 2021, eleven congressional leaders (“the Signors”) sent a letter to Andrew Hirshfeld, the acting director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”), requesting the USPTO to reevaluate the Patent Trial and Appeal Board’s (“PTAB”) view
Continue Reading Key Members of Congress Urge USPTO to Curtail Discretionary Denials of IPR Petitions to Help Lower Drug Costs by Breaking Patent Thickets
On September 13, 2021, Regenxbio, a Maryland biotech company, and AbbVie announced that they have entered an agreement to develop and commercialize a potential gene therapy drug developed by Regenxbio for treating age-related macular degeneration (wet AMD), diabetic retinopathy, and
Continue Reading Abbvie and Regenexbio Agree to Develop and Commercialize Eye Disease Gene Therapy
Recently, the Supreme Court received two petitions for writ of certiorari challenging the NHK-Fintiv rule. The PTAB applies the NHK-Fintiv rule when deciding whether to grant institution of an inter partes review. The two petitioners, Apple and Mylan, seek to
Continue Reading Recent Challenges to the NHK-Fintiv Rule
On August 20, 2021, China passed its first general data protection law, called the Personal Information Protection Law (“PIPL”). The law is set to take effect on November 1, 2021 (two months away), and it applies to both (1) in-country
Continue Reading China’s New Data Protection Law – Personal Information Protection Act (PIPL)
On August 3, 2021, the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) released the Draft Revised Patent Examination Guidelines (“Draft Guidelines”) for comments. The revisions in the Draft Guidelines reflect the recently amended Chinese Patent Law that came into effect on
Continue Reading Chinese Patent Linkage, Patent Term Adjustment, and Patent Term Extension Guidelines Unveiled For Comments
In some circumstances, patent applicants may petition the Patent Office to suspend non-statutory rules under 37 CFR § 1.183. As the text of the rule indicates, the Patent Office will only grant such petitions “[i]n an extraordinary situation, when justice
Continue Reading Suspending the Rules: A Year’s Worth of USPTO Petitions
