American Conference Institute (ACI) will be offering its 3rd Comprehensive Guide to Patent Reform from January 22-23, 2014 in New York, NY. The conference will cover practice pitfalls and new procedural advantages by participating in discussions on such topics as:
• Adapting to the first-to-file system and developing advanced techniques to ensure issuance of robust patents;
• Determining the fate of "best mode," and analyzing the pros and cons of utilizing trade secret protection;
• Incorporating increased due diligence practices pre-issuance to compensate for the expansion of "prior art";
• Utilizing supplemental re-examination proceedings and preparing for third party pre-issuance attacks;
• Obtaining the optimal result in Inter Partes Review proceedings;
• Bracing for the implementation of Post-Grant Review proceedings, and benefiting from Covered Business Methods procedures;
• Analyzing the impact of patent reform on Hatch-Waxman litigation; and
• Surveying and exploring the effects of proposed legislation targeting "non-practicing entities."
In particular, ACI's faculty will offer presentations on the following topics:
• USPTO keynote address: The USPTO's efforts to implement AIA provisions impacting patent prosecution -- to be presented by Janet Gongola, Associate Commissioner for Patent Examination Policy, U.S. Patent & Trademark Office;
• Straddling the first-to-invent/first-to-file gap: Changing company protocols, cautiously approaching amendments, and strategies for promoting likelihood of issuance;
• Through the AIA prior art looking glass -- Understanding the global wonderland of prior art, and utilizing preissuance submissions, supplemental examination, ex parte reexamination, and reissue;
• USPTO Address: Detailing how the new post-grant opposition procedures have impacted patenting, and updating on the implementation of the post-grant review proceedings -- to be presented by Hon. James Donald Smith, Chief Administrative Patent Judge, Patent Trial and Appeal Board, U.S. Patent & Trademark Office;
• Innovative practice resources for meeting with success during inter partes review;
• Red skies on the horizon -- Tracking developments of covered business method proceedings and preparing for the era of the post-grant review;
• Examining the impact of patent reform on Hatch-Waxman litigation and the brand/generic wars;
• Interactive open floor discussion on proposed legislation on "non-practicing entities"; and
• The showdown over diagnostic methods -- Obtaining patent protection from the PTO under the AIA despite the Supreme Court's nebulous view of a “product of nature."
In addition, a pre-conference workshop entitled "Patent Reform 101: A Primer on the Fundamental Provisions of the America Invents Act" will be offered from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm on January 22, 2014, and a post-conference workshop entitled "Interactive Working Group Session: A Hypothetical Invention Being Patented Under the AIA" will be offered from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm on January 24, 2014.
An agenda for the conference can be found here (Day 1) and here (Day 2). More information regarding the workshops can be found here and here. A complete brochure for this conference, including an agenda, detailed descriptions of conference sessions, list of speakers, and registration form can be obtained here.
The registration fee for the conference is $2,295 (conference alone), $2,895 (conference and one workshop), or $3,495 (conference and two workshops). Those registering by December 13, 2013 will receive a $200 discount. Those interested in registering for the conference can do so here, by e-mailing [email protected], by calling 1-888-224-2480, or by faxing a registration form to 1-877-927-1563.
Patent Docs is a media partner of the Patent Reform conference.
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