Please join The Hon. Jon W. Dudas, former Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), Stephen B. Maebius, former Tokyo University Visiting Professor, and C. Edward Polk, former Associate Solicitor of the USPTO, as they jointly address the challenges of protecting intellectual property (IP) assets in the face of diminishing IP budgets.
The panel, all Foley partners, will address the impact of the following on Japanese companies:
Current “Patent Reform” Legislation: Will it pass? What amendments may be made? How will U.S. patent litigation be impacted? Will special “patent district courts” be established? Critical changes in forum shopping, damages calculus, and other key issues will be discussed.
Future of USPTO New Rules: How would the Federal Circuit’s decision on Tafas v. Doll on March 20, 2009 affect the USPTO’s efforts to implement the new Claims & Continuations Rules? Would the new USPTO leadership being appointed by the Obama administration alter the eventual outcome?
The Role of Japanese Industries in the U.S. Legislative Process: A vast majority of major Japanese companies are, in fact, global enterprises, each with a significant U.S. market presence and/or operations. What role should multi-national companies take? How should they interface with the domestic legislative process?
