Panels:

Enablement and Written Description Requirements

The Federal Circuit has applied its disclosure rules with particular force in biotechnology, invalidating many patents and narrowly cabining the scope of protection given inventors.  Recent developments have left the law in disarray.  Our panel will discuss the direction of the law and what it means for biotechnology companies.

Non-Obviousness and the Inherency Doctrine

The Federal Circuit has applied the inherency doctrine with renewed vigor in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology areas, while leaving open questions as to what the doctrine means and how it affects DNA patents.  By contrast, it has proven willing to permit patents on some inventions that seem obvious to scientists in the field.  Our panel will seek to understand the rules in these fields.

Licensing

Patent licensing in biotechnology presents unique challenges, ranging from regulatory restrictions to reach-through licenses to antitrust concerns.  We will discuss the nature and problems that come up in writing biotechnology patent licenses.

Keynote Speaker - John H. Barton

Trying Biotech Patent Cases

Join a panel of judges, litigators, and in-house counsel as they discuss the challenges and hazards of trying a biotechnology patent case to a jury.

Gene Patents and Policy

Though gene patents have been around for decades, their acquisition and enforcement continue to be the subject of much controversy, both here and abroad.  Should DNA sequences alone be patentable?  Do DNA patents risk creating an "anticommons"?  What rights should the owner of a DNA patent have to control downstream research?  Is compulsory licensing of gene patents ever appropriate?  We will discuss these issues and others.

Future Issues

The conference will conclude with a general discussion by panelists and audience members of these issues and others that are likely to arise in the future.