No Bilski Decision from SCOTUS Yet May 17, 2010
At Technically Legal we’re all waiting with bated breath for the Supreme Court’s ruling on In re Bilski. The SCOTUS Blog is covering the release of opinions from the Court on their website, but today wasn’t the day for Bilski. <insert anxious IP lawyer faces here>
The ruling may entirely change the doctrinal scope of “patentable methods or processes”. Although the Bilski case deals with controversial business method patents, the doctrines at issues will affect a wide range of other patents, including the ability to patent computer software. If you haven’t been following the case, the issues stem from the Federal Circuit’s recent adoption of the “machine or transformation test” which was developed in the Bilski case in 2008.
We are now in the pipeline for Supreme Court decisions. The Supreme Court is in session from early October until the end of June, across a calendar year (i.e., October 2009 – June 2010). Oral arguments for Bilski were heard before the Supreme Court last November and a decision is expected any week now. According to the SCOTUS Blog’s calendar for May and June, which tracks events at the D.C.-based Court, rulings are expected to be released on the following Mondays:
May 17 & 24th
June 7, 14, 21, & 28th
Assuming this time line is correct, we are anticipating the Bilski ruling on one of those days. Of course, we’ll provide links, coverage and analysis on our blog and podcast as soon as the ruling is released. Stay tuned until then.
No related posts.
