Joseph Lanser Quoted in E-Commerce Times
"High Court Hears 'Case of the Century’"

Joseph Lanser was quoted in the November 10, 2009 article, "High Court Hears 'Case of the Century,'” published in E-Commerce Times. The article reported that the U.S. Supreme Court ruling Bilski v. Kappos  could impose radical changes in the way intellectual property can be protected. According to the article, Bernard Bilski and Rand Warsaw applied for a patent in 1997 and were denied the claim on the grounds that it was too abstract. The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit upheld that decision in 2008 and now the Supreme Court will decide whether a process must be tied to a particular machine or apparatus, or transform a particular article into a different state of thing to be patentable. In addition, the article mentioned that the Supreme Court will also consider whether the Federal Circuit's machine-or-transformation test for patent eligibility contradicts clear Congressional intent that patents should protect methods of doing or conducting business.

Joe explained, "While it is unlikely that the Supreme Court will grant carte blanche patent protection to mere ideas and thoughts such as those that have been covered by some pure-business method patents over the years.... It is hopeful that the Supreme Court will recognize the need for patentable protection of creative and innovative inventions ­­­-- notwithstanding that those inventions may not be able to be tied to a physical apparatus or structure,
as required by the Federal Circuit's holding."