“Why Today’s Patent Environment Makes IP Due Diligence a Strategic Necessity” Published in Innovation & Tech Today

By Partner, Peter C. Lando and Legal Intern, Zoe Lyon

The legal landscape pertaining to patent disputes in the United States is continuously evolving, and this necessitates a heightened focus on patent due diligence for businesses across all sectors. Driven by a landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision and several proposed patent-related bills in Congress discussed below, the risks associated with patent infringement may be escalating, thereby increasing the need for proactive legal and critical consideration before investments and commercialization activities are undertaken.

The Halo Effect: A Shift Toward Punitive Damages

The 2016 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Halo Electronics, Inc. v. Pulse Electronics, Inc. marked a pivotal moment in patent law, fundamentally altering how willful patent infringement and enhanced damages are determined. Prior to Halo, the Federal Circuit’s stringent “Seagate test” required patentees to prove both an objectively high risk of infringement and the infringer’s subjective knowledge of that risk by “clear and convincing evidence.” In Halo, the Court lowered this standard of proof to a “preponderance of the evidence.” The Court also held that all determinations regarding enhanced damages would be reviewed under a single “abuse of discretion” standard, rather than multiple standards.

Read the full article on innotechtoday.com.