Patent Procedure

Procedure in Issuing Patents

The standard of patentability is a constitutional standard, and the question of the validity of a patent is a question of law.1 Congress may authorize the issuance of a patent for an invention by a special, as well as by general, law, provided the question as to whether the patentee's device is in truth an invention is left open to investigation under the general law.2 The function of the Commissioner of Patents in issuing letters patent is deemed to be quasi-judicial in character. Hence an act granting a right of appeal from the Commission to the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia is not unconstitutional as conferring executive power upon a judicial body.3 The primary responsibility, however, for weeding out unpatentable devices rests in the Patent Office.4 The present system of “de novo” hearings before the Court of Appeals allows the applicant to present new evidence that the Patent Office has not heard,5 thus making somewhat amorphous the central responsibility.

Resources

References

This text about Patent Procedure is based on “The Constitution of the United States of America: Analysis and Interpretation”, published by the U.S. Government Printing Office.

[Footnote 1] A. & P. Tea Co. v. Supermarket Equipment Corp., 340 U.S. 147 (1950); Mahn v. Harwood, 112 U.S. 354, 358 (1884). In Markman v. Westview Instruments, Inc., 517 U.S. 348 (1996), the Court held that the interpretation of terms in a patent claim is a matter of law reserved entirely for the courts. The Seventh Amendment does not require that such issues be tried to a jury.

[Footnote 2] Evans v. Eaton, 16 U.S. (3 Wheat.) 454, 512 (1818).

[Footnote 3] United States v. Duell, 172 U.S. 576, 586-89 (1899). See also Butterworth v. United States ex rel. Hoe, 112 U.S. 50 (1884).

[Footnote 4] Graham v. John Deere Co., 383 U.S. 1, 18 (1966).

[Footnote 5] In Jennings v. Brenner, 255 F. Supp. 410, 412 (D.D.C. 1966), District Judge Holtzoff suggested that a system of remand be adopted.

Tables of Contents

• Patent Procedure and other Topics in the Contents – Article 1 of the U.S. Constitution
• U.S. Constitutional Law Category
• List of amendments to the U.S. Constitution
• Patent Procedure and other Topics in the Constitution Contents
• Interpretation of the U.S. Constitution (Table of Contents)
• Clauses of the Constitution (Table of Contents)