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Monday, April 19, 2004
1. What is the critical date for novelty - I know it is date of invention, but does that mean date of conception or reduction to practice?
2. For patent priority, if A is first to conceive but B reduces to practice first and files before A reduces to practice, can reasonable diligence still save A so long as the patent hasn't already been granted to B?
Posted by Holly Fernandez on April 19, 2004 at 09:24 PM | Permalink
Comments
1. Conception
2. You're thinking about this too much. If A files within a certain time of B (I think it is 6 months or a year) then A can get an automatic interference declared, at which point there is a contest to prove who was first to conceive. But if B's patent application is published or if B's patent issues more than a year before A files, then A is barred completely (under 102(b)). Even so, A's prior invention could still be used to invalidate B's patent so nobody will end up with a patent.
Posted by: Larry Zelson at Apr 19, 2004 9:58:10 PM
[1] Conception.
[2] Yes, reasonable diligence can save A in your hypo -- though as Larry notes, if B's patent (or application) has been published for more than a year, then A loses under 102(b), not 102(g).
Posted by: Polk Wagner at Apr 19, 2004 10:49:43 PM
