The Most Important Intellectual Property Developments in the US

Ms. Sarah Columbia

This lecture will cover recent developments in US administrative and judicial precedent, together with a discussion on possible practical impacts of these developments, including and how those developments are impacting the US intellectual property system.

The lecture will include a presentation of the most important recent decisions by the US Supreme Court and the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals, including Samsung v Apple, Enfish v Microsoft, Cuozzo, SCA Hygiene, Halo, Amgen v Sandoz, T.C. Heartland and others, with a focus on the impact those decisions are having on US intellectual property litigation and on the strategies being employed for the protection of intellectual property in the United States. In particular, we will discuss the increased pressure on patentable subject matter in both the high tech and life sciences fields, the impact of Highmark and Octane Fitness on the award of attorneys' fees and how that is influencing behavior, the changing strategies in light of the downward pressure on damages awards in light of VirnetX, Apple v Samsung, and other cases. Depending upon whether the US Supreme Court has issued its decision in the TC Heartland case, we will discuss the decision (or potential decision) and its impact – both legal and practical – on US patent litigation.

Sarah Chapin Columbia is a partner in the law firm of McDermott Will & Emery LLP and is global head of the Intellectual Property Practice Group. Her practice focuses on intellectual property litigation including patent, trademark, copyright and trade secret matters. She also counsels clients on overall intellectual property strategy and positioning, including litigation avoidance, and represents clients in private arbitrations both in the United States and in Europe.

Sarah has appeared in several state, federal district and appellate courts. She represents clients across several industries including semiconductor, pharmaceutical, biotechnology, Internet, hardware and software, medical device and manufacturing companies. Sarah’s recent significant cases include high-profile jury trial wins for Amgen in a case involving monoclonal antibodies and another jury trial win for smartphone maker BlackBerry.