George C. Beck

Partner

George C. Beck is a partner and intellectual property lawyer with Foley & Lardner LLP. His practice extends to all aspects of intellectual property law. He currently focuses his practice on patent counseling, procurement, and post-grant proceedings before the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office.

George has prepared and prosecuted patent applications in a variety of technical areas, including consumer electronics, liquid crystal display technology, telecommunications, semiconductor devices and manufacturing, semiconductor manufacturing test equipment, and business methods. He is a member of the firm’s Electronics Practice and Patent Office Trials Practice.

George has participated in patent and trade secret litigation matters in various district courts and the International Trade Commission. Representative experience includes the successful defense of a memory device manufacturer in ITC Investigation No. 337-TA-630, In the Matter of Certain Semiconductor Chips With Minimized Chip Package Size and Products Containing Same (III).

George has worked extensively on various reissue applications ex parte and inter partes reexamination matters, and inter partes review proceedings. Representative experience includes the successful challenge of all claims of three liquid chromatography patents in inter partes reexaminations 95/000,495, -496, and -497, and the Federal Circuit’s affirmance of the PTO’s decision in Scientific Plastic Products, Inc. v. Biotage AB, Appeal No. 2013-1219.

George served as a patent examiner at the United States Patent & Trademark Office from 1989 to 1990. In this capacity, he examined inventions utilizing photocells, including applications involving auto focus cameras, semiconductor devices with photosensitive components, photocopiers, and security systems.

Awards and Recognition

In 2014, The Legal 500 recognized Mr. Beck for his work in the area of sports.

Affiliations

George currently is a member of the American Intellectual Property Law Association, the American Bar Association, and the Society for Information Display.

 

 

 

20 February 2024 Events

2023 PTAB Year in Review

The USPTO Patent Trial and Appeal Board had another newsworthy year in 2023. Please join Foley & Lardner for a webinar looking back at the past year's major developments and how they may impact practice before the PTAB in 2024.
06 October 2023 Events

19th Annual IP Conference

Foley & Lardner LLP is thrilled to present our 19th Annual IP Conference on Friday, October 6, 2023, live and in person from Boston’s Seaport District.
13 October 2022 Article

Timing Considerations for Section 337 Investigations & IPRs

In June 2022, US Patent and Trademark Office Director Katherine Vidal released a guidance memorandum significantly limiting the circumstances in which the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) should exercise its discretion to deny institution under Fintiv.
13 October 2022 In the News

Foley Attorneys Author Article on “Timing Considerations for Section 337 Investigations & IPRs”

Foley & Lardner LLP Senior Counsel Brad Roush and Partners George Beck and Liane Peterson authored the Bloomberg Law Professional Perspectives article, “Timing Considerations for Section 337 Investigations & IPRs,” about what respondents should be aware of before filing a petition for inter partes review (IPR), specifically surrounding the timing and process leading up to the final written decision.
23 June 2022 Blogs

Fintiv Discretionary Denial of PTAB Proceedings Under the New Director

The new director of the USPTO recently issued a memorandum mandating specific procedures at the PTAB for analyzing discretionary denial of PTAB proceedings under Fintiv.
24 February 2022 Events

2021 PTAB Year in Review

Please join seasoned Foley & Lardner PTAB Trials Practice Group attorneys Mike Houston and George Beck on February 24, 2022, for a discussion of the year's major developments and how they may impact practice before the PTAB going forward.