Software patent cases often present dozens of claims requiring tremendous effort and years of costly litigation to reach a resolution. In a provocative essay, Judge William Alsup offers an innovative case management solution inspired by western frontier justice. As Judge Alsup warned attorneys...

The Supreme Court should grant review of the Federal Circuit's decisions in Oracle v. Google for two compelling sets of reasons. First, the Federal Circuit's decisions conflict with this Court's seminal decision in Baker v. Selden, 101 U.S. 99 (1879), misinterpret Congress's codification of this...

The determination of patent damages lies at the heart of patent law and policy, yet it remains one of the most contentious topics in this field, particularly as regards the calculation of a reasonable royalty. In March 2016, the Berkeley Center for Law & Technology convened a workshop of leading...

The information revolution has brought demand-side effects to the fore of economic activity, business strategy, and intellectual property jurisprudence and policy. Intellectual property doctrines play a central role in harnessing network effects, promoting innovation to overcome excess inertia,...

Four decades ago, the Ninth Circuit ruled that expert testimony was inadmissible to determine whether Mayor McCheese and the merry band of McDonaldland characters infringed copyright protection for Wilhelmina W. Witchiepoo and the other imaginative H.R. Pufnstuf costumed characters. Since the...

Patent claims define the scope of the patent right and hence are central to the operation of the patent system. Patent prosecutors devote substantial effort to crafting patent claims so as to maximize the scope of their right without “reading on” prior art (and thereby defeating novelty)....

Notice of preexisting rights plays a critical role in resource planning. This article focuses on the history, role, institutions, costs, and efficacy of notice within the domain of expressive creativity. It distinguishes between two sets of copyright notice challenges: tracing of copyright...

This article calls attention to the dismal state of copyright's public approval rating. Drawing on the format and style of Ira Glass's “This American Life” radio broadcast, the presentation unfolds in three parts: Act I – How did we get here?; Act II – Why should society care about...

The Aereo case presented two fundamental showdowns: one between the cable industry and a charismatic disruptive technology and the other between textualists and jurists seeking to vindicate legislative intent. Much of the media attention surrounding the case focused on the former. But it was the...

In Mayo Collaborative Services v. Prometheus Laboratories, Inc. (2012), the Supreme Court triggered the most radical redefinition of patent-eligible subject matter in U.S. history by engrafting onto § 101 an inventive application requirement for patenting practical applications of scientific...