Technically Speaking, Does It Matter? An Empirical Study Linking the Federal Circuit Judges' Technical Backgrounds to How They Analyze the Section 112 Enablement and Written Description Requirements

Authors

Dunstan H. Barnes

Abstract

Patent cases are decided exclusively by federal judges, who—unlike patent attorneys appearing before the United States Patent and Trademark Office—are not required to have any scientific or technical qualifications. The present empirical study explores whether there is a correlation between the technical backgrounds of judges on the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and these judges’ analysis of the enablement and written description patent requirements under 35 U.S.C. § 112. The results indicate that Federal Circuit judges with technical backgrounds are more likely than their non-technical peers to reverse lower courts, but not significantly more likely to invalidate a patent for failure to comply with Section 112.

Recommended Citation

Dunstan H. Barnes, Technically Speaking, Does It Matter? An Empirical Study Linking the Federal Circuit Judges' Technical Backgrounds to How They Analyze the Section 112 Enablement and Written Description Requirements, 88 Chi.-Kent L. Rev. 971 (2013).
Available at: https://scholarship.kentlaw.iit.edu/cklawreview/vol88/iss3/12