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Cantor Colburn | April/May 2026 Ideas on Intellectual Property Law
Watch your words
Patent infringement case fails because of redefined claim term
Drafting a patent application requires careful phrasing to avoid costly missteps. One patent holder recently learned the hard way that words used in a specification can end up redefining ostensibly clear patent claim terms — and limiting the patent protection as a result. This article reminds readers that while the meaning of a claim term might be apparent, a court could disagree. A short sidebar looks at how a patentee can disavow a patent claim’s scope.
Aortic Innovations LLC v. Edwards Lifesciences Corp., No. 24-1145, Oct. 27, 2025, Fed. Cir.
Clarifying the “by another” standard under the pre-AIA Patent Act
Can an existing patent application invalidate subsequently filed patents if the application and the patents identify overlapping inventors? The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, which hears all patent-related appeals, recently addressed this issue. This article reviews why the result was bad news for the holder of the challenged patents.
Merck Serono S.A. v. Hopewell Pharma Ventures, Inc., No. 25-1210, Oct. 30, 2025, Fed. Cir.
Trade secrets must be … secret
Trade secret misappropriation cases often involve an employer suing a former employee. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit heard a case last year that flipped the script — the former employee sued the employer over information he’d copied from yet another previous employer. Although disclosure of a trade secret doesn’t automatically defeat trade secret protection, a plaintiff must take subsequent affirmative action to safeguard the information and mitigate the scope of the disclosure. The plaintiff in this case not only failed to do that, but also affirmatively ratified his disclosure by telling the CEO it was intentional.
Snyder v. Beam Techs. Inc., No. 24-1136, Aug. 5, 2025, 10th Cir.
How to fail at a sound recording copyright infringement
Different types of copyrights convey different kinds and amounts of rights to the holder. This short article reviews a recent infringement case highlighting the distinction between a sound recording copyright and a musical composition copyright — and how a sound recording copyright holder can show infringement.
Richardson v. Kharbouch, No. 24-1119, Oct. 16, 2025, 7th Cir.
