The first episode of this season of Clause 8 featured the most recent USPTO Director - Andrei Iancu - discussing his efforts to strengthen America’s patent system over the last three years.  One of the most publicly vocal opponents of those efforts was Josh Landau, patent counsel at the Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA).  Now that those views are in ascendancy in the Biden administration and Congress, it made sense to finish this season by talking to Josh.    It was Josh who first broke the news on CCIA’s Patent Progress blog that Sen. Patrick Leahy was taking the top Democrat slot on the Senate’s IP Subcommittee from Sen. Chris Coons.  Coons helped restart the subcommittee two years earlier and was the most significant Democratic supporter of stronger patent rights on Capitol Hill.  The blog post signaled that CCIA’s patent policy ally is now in charge. In this episode, Josh shares his thoughts on the role of the CCIA in the patent debate and his strong views on various patent-related policy issues: “I will actually push back on the idea that section 101 is particularly unclear. The problem is not that it's unclear. The problem is that in many cases or some cases, the judges of the Federal Circuit or attorneys don't like what the outcome is.”  Josh also discusses effective patent policy advocacy in general, where the patent pendulum will swing under the Biden administration, and the low point for “patent quality.”  Josh and Eli also discuss whether the patent system is unfair in any way for patent owners. For anyone wanting to follow in Josh’s career footsteps, his advice is this: “It's hard to get work in policy without having worked in policy. If you're interested in this, try and find roles in government, try and find roles on the Hill to know some level of what the policy sphere is like.” On this episode: The role of the CCIA in the patent debate The failure of Section 101 legislation in the last Congress The “patent quality” problem How the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) operates Patent policy advocacy on Capitol Hill Patent policy in Trump v Biden administration  Is the patent system unfair to patent owners in any way? Why do different patent attorneys have such different views of the patent system? The “peanut butter and jelly sandwich” patent   Links: Senator Leahy to Take Chair of IP Subcommittee US Inventors organization 

Clause 8

Josh Landau - On Lobbying for Weaker Patent Rights and “Making a PB&J Sandwich”

“Jeff [Roh] knew for every person like [him], who is able to succeed, there's countless others who aren't. They just fall flat because they encounter resistance and give up. And so he was on a mission to make other inventors and surgeons be successful as well." Don’t miss this latest episode of Clause 8 with President and Chief Legal Officer of IntuitiveX, Mark Han, about the new business model they have created to help innovators in the medical field.  Mark cut his teeth working for the largest and most notorious “patent troll” Intellectual Ventures (IV).  During the episode, Mark talks about what he learned from that experience and why he’s now excited to be in the business of bringing new products to market and building  new companies at IntuitiveX.  “A lot of the large companies like Medtronic, they used to have a massive R&D team in-house. A ton of individuals whose jobs are just to invent new things and develop new products from within that company. Now, the model has shifted and those same companies are looking toward smaller companies to de-risk these ideas for them and get a little market traction." Mark talks about how IntuitiveX uses the patent process to advance breakthroughs in medtech and life sciences in ways that are not possible in other fields.  “What IntuitiveX does differently is, we actually want to either invent or help inventors. And we specialize in the medical and life science space. We help clients protect their ideas, develop prototypes, test, validate, raise money, set up manufacturing capabilities, regulatory expertise to get FDA approval, and then ultimately bring the product to market.” This is an incredibly insightful episode exploring first hand how the patent process helps innovative individuals and small companies bring their medtech ideas to fruition.  On today’s podcast: Intellectual Ventures How to identify and acquire valuable portfolios The “patent troll” narrative How IntuitiveX is advancing medtech What IntuitiveX look for in an innovators and their inventions Taking Amplify Surgical from idea to market   Links: Intuitive X Amplify Surgical 

Mark Han: Applying Lessons from Intellectual Ventures to Helping Innovative Doctors

Chris Agrawal is President of the Association of Intellectual Property Firms and partner at Bookoff McAndrews.  He was instrumental in one of the biggest patent transactions in history and the reason Eli got into patent law in the first place.  If you’re a startup founder or an executive at a growth stage company worrying about patent protection or wondering how to scale your patent program, download and listen to this episode today. On how AIPF helped IP firms navigate the pandemic: “I was really thankful to have the association because we were all talking with each other and sharing information about what we were doing. And so it was really helpful as the pandemic was hitting - in late February and early March of 2020 - [to be] talking to each other about what we were seeing internationally from our clients, from other firms.” Learn how Chris approaches building a valuable portfolio of patents: “The first place I start is looking at the business. What does the business look like today? And what do they need first and foremost? And then from there, start looking at more of the nice to haves. Is there something else where there's real revenue, but it's really not connected to our business? Where can we turn the portfolio itself into an asset separate from our business?” How he thinks about monetizing valuable patents: “In general, you start to map out the market. The first place you look at with any deal is who are the infringers? What does the market look like for these claims? Who needs the claims? Who's practising the claims? And what does that market look like? Who are the big players? And also, who is in need of a portfolio like this?” Finding the right balance for the client relying on outside counsel: “There's this kind of dance that will happen at certain points in prosecution with an examiner where you have to kind of really quickly make some decisions on the fly about what deals to make with an examiner . . .how to change scope here and there a little bit.  I think ideally you want to empower your outside counsel to be able to have a little bit of leeway with examiners so that, so that that dance can happen. I think it's really powerful if you can empower your counsel to do that.” For all this and more, don’t miss Chris Agrawal on this week’s episode of Clause 8. On today’s podcast: Perspective as AIPF’s president on how firms have been able to succeed over the last year Building and selling $1 billion patent portfolio Prosecuting old patent applications that read on new technologies Scaling a patent portfolio for startups and growth stage companies Strategically thinking about role of in-house IP counsel Unique challenges of handling patent prosecution work Priceless advice to law firm attorneys  Staying on top of patents as GC   Links: Chris Agrawal Christopher Agrawal President of the Association of IP Firms (AIPF) 

Chris Agrawal: AIPF’s President on Growing $1 Billion Portfolio & Succeeding in IP Field

We hope you've enjoyed the episodes we've released so far in this season. We'll be taking a short break and will release the rest of the season very soon. For more information, visit voiceofip.com.  And, if you would like to learn more about my firm, visit harrityllp.com.

Welcome to Clause 8

If you’ve ever wondered how and why Judge Alan D Albright - of the Western District Texas -  became America’s go-to judge for patent cases, you don’t want to miss this episode.  Before Judge Albright was confirmed in 2018, less than 10 patent cases had been filed in Waco district in its entire history. In 2020 alone, he took on almost 800 new patent cases, accounting for 20% of all new patent cases filed in the US last year.  “Having practised all those years, I get that 99% of the time, while it may appear that the dispute is trivial, it's really important. It's very binary, and whatever I rule is going to drop, not maybe dramatically, but it's going to have an impact.” This episode covers why Judge Albright loves handling patent cases, his plans for handling a growing docket, and his views on how a judge should handle a patent case and what makes an effective patent litigation counsel.  “The best math teacher you're ever going to have is someone who really understands math, so that when they're explaining it to you, they make it simple enough for you to understand. It's the same with patent cases. Which is, find unicorns who have such a high level of technical understanding that they can then teach it to a jury through the witnesses.” Judge Albright is as transparent in this episode as he is in the courtroom. So if you’re wondering how to make your case more efficient, how you can clerk for him, or why it’s easier to predict where to be struck by lightning than how to become a district court judge, don’t miss him on this week’s Clause 8.  On today’s podcast: Judge Albright’s love for patent cases & why it’s not really work for him Plan to handle growing docket of patent cases  Getting into patent law as the youngest magistrate judge in history Why many district court judges aren’t interested in handling patent cases and how it impacts their resolution  Example set by Judge John Ward and Eastern District of Texas Why patent owners deserve a jury trial Picking effective patent litigation counsel Discovery disputes  Approach to attorneys filing transfer motions  Advice to trial attorneys for preparing and being effective  Navigating Federal Circuit decisions and focusing on being a good trial judge  Following press coverage & commitment to transparency Clerking for Judge Alan Albright Why you shouldn’t - or possibly should - wear python boots to the courthouse Links: US District Judge Alan Albright – US District Court 

Alan Albright - On Becoming the Go-To Judge for Patent Cases

How many Supreme Court Justices can you count as friends? Professor Stephen Yelderman, one of America’s leading IP scholars, was recruited to join the Notre Dame Law School faculty by future Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett, and clerked for Justice Neil Gorsuch before and after he joined the Supreme Court.  Prof. Yelderman’s experience of having a personal connection to not one, but two Supreme Court justices, as well as having clerked at the Supreme Court, have provided him with a unique perspective into how the Supreme Court approaches patent and other IP issues.  “One of the cool things about the court is there's usually nine justices and at least nine clerks, all thinking about the exact same legal issues at the exact same moment in time. And it really leads to a level of engagement, and conversation and debate. That really is a lot of fun.” In today’s incredibly candid episode, Prof. Yelderman shares his journey into patent law, why he chose to become a patent agent, meeting Justice Amy Coney Barrett, clerking at the Supreme Court, and the creative ways companies try to influence the Supreme Court.    Prof. Yelderman insights are not to be missed by anyone who is interested in having a better understanding of how the Supreme Court approaches IP issues, how the patent system truly works, and how to succeed in the legal field.  “A piece of advice I have is when an opportunity comes, say yes to it because you oftentimes don't have good visibility to all the doors that will open down the road.” On today’s podcast: From engineering at Stanford to patent law to clerking at the Supreme Court Misguided thinking about “patent quality” Different approaches to anticipation and obviousness during USPTO examination, PTAB proceedings, and district court litigation Meeting and working with ACB before she joined the Supreme Court The one patent case ACB decided before joining the Supreme Court that cited one of Prof. Yelderman’s articles How and why the Supreme Court approaches IP cases differently from other cases Gorsuch’s correct approach to patent cases & the one case he got wrong Why Gorsuch’s concerns regarding the PTAB are likely to be the future consensus  Efforts to influence Supreme Court & impact of atmospherics on the justices’ decisions regarding patent cases   Links: Stephen Yelderman 

Prof. Stephen Yelderman - A Personal View of How the Supreme Court Approaches IP

At the end of last year, IPWatchdog asked leaders in the field about their wildest dreams for America’s IP system. The most common answer was for former director of the USPTO Andrei Iancu to continue on as director.  Former Deputy USPTO Director Russ Slifer noted that Andrei will be a hard act to follow.  Andrei immigrated from communist Romania when he was 13 years old, and still, to this day, believes the US is the best place to be for freedom and opportunity.  “I'm a huge fan of innovation and creation, creativity, and the intellectual property that supports all of that. I do believe in one's ability to take control of their own destiny and succeed, and I think the United States offers that unlike any other country.” From the first time learning about patents, to pursuing a career in patent litigation where he represented clients on both sides and in all sorts of industries for over 20 years, to creating balance at the USPTO, to highlighting how successfully the IP system has enabled the invention, development, production and rollout of multiple COVID-19 vaccines, not just in the US, but worldwide, Andrei’s passion for patents is palpable: “This is really the best area of law to be in, one of the best professions to be in, in general, how lucky we are. We work on behalf of the most creative people in the world, literally people who are changing the world and improving the human condition.” If you’re keen to follow in Andrei Iancu’s footsteps, to be a future director of the USPTO, or to find out how to communicate with the new director, don’t miss Andrei on this week’s Clause 8.  On today’s podcast: From communist Romania to USPTO How the IP system has dealt with the pandemic The two jobs of the PTO director The best way to communicate with the USPTO What makes employees successful at the USPTO Andrei’s advice to younger patent attorneys   Links: https://www.irell.com/lawyers-andrei-iancu LinkedIn - Andrei Iancu Book- The Boys In The Boat 

Andrei Iancu - From Communist Romania To USPTO Director

Judge Joe Lentivech is a former Administrative Patent Judge. On this episode, he talks about how he became an Administrative Patent Judge, how the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) operates, how to win ex parte appeals, overcoming Section 101 rejections, oral hearings at the PTAB, and much more!

23. Joseph Lentivech - Ex-PTAB Judge on Ex-Parte Appeals

Brad Watts is the Majority Chief Counsel and Staff Director for the Senate Subcommittee on Intellectual Property. Under the leadership of Sen. Thom Tillis, Brad led the herculean effort to fix the Section 101, patent eligibility mess. In this episode, Eli and Brad talk what really happened during this last attempt at reform, why it wasn’t successful, where to go from here, and much more.

22. Brad Watts - Section 101 Reform Efforts in the 116th Congress

Welcome to Clause 8 – the Voice of IP. Clause 8 is part of IPWatchdog and hosted by Eli Mazour. If you enjoy listening, please subscribe on your favorite podcasting app, share it with others, and leave a five-star rating. This episode features an interview with Professor Adam Mossoff from George Mason University’s Scalia Law School. He is the leading academic expert when it comes to intellectual property policy issues. Most significantly, he is largely responsible for providing the intellectual foundation that has helped shift the anti-patent narrative in Washington, DC. There’s a good chance that you’ve come across his many op-eds on IP issues in publications such as the Wall Street Journal or have seen his engaging testimony at Congressional Hearings. On this episode, Eli and Professor Mossoff discuss many subjects, including: • how Richard Epstein influenced Professor Mossoff’s scholarship, • how the ideals of classical liberalism relate to intellectual property rights, • the debate among conservatives and libertarians regarding IP issues • what’s wrong about framing IP rights as being all about providing incentives, • the Supreme Court’s approach to patent cases, • why Congress and the executive branch – not the Supreme Court - are the better path for improving America’s patent system • “Why Do Law Professors Do What They Do?” • how law school professors influence the patent policy debate, • how trade organizations try to shape the patent policy debate by using law professors and other prominent attorneys, • importance of law school professors making it clear when they’re acting as advocates v. as academics, • navigating junk science studies/statistical claims about the patent system, • importance of engaging in a positive research agenda about the patent system instead of just reacting to bad scholarship, • empirical research overwhelmingly contradicting the patent holdup theory over the last 10 years, • educating Congressman Darrell Issa and the importance of having evidence and data on your side, • contradiction of China strengthening its own patent system while continuing to steal IP from other countries and having no rule of law otherwise, • the unprecedented response by the pharmaceutical industry to the COVID‑19 pandemic thanks to the foundation previously created by America’s patent system, and • how current changes to the patent system can undermine a similar response to the future.

21. Professor Adam Mossoff

This episode features an interview with Bruce MacEwen. He is the founder and president of Adam Smith, Esq. and has written thousands of articles on the economics of law firms. He is recognized as the world’s leading expert in this subject and provides advice to a select number of law firms about how to succeed in the changing legal landscape. During this episode, Bruce and Eli discuss: • Why Bruce thought there was something off about law firms by Thanksgiving of his first year as an associate • How companies select & manage outside counsel • Tension of building in-house law departments v. relying on outside counsel • Why law firms refuse to do recession scenario planning • Surprising nimbleness of law firms • Law firms being much more thoughtful and humane in dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic than they were during the “Great Financial Reset of 2008” • Why successful law firm partners can be dynamite for law firms • Rethinking real estate needs of law firms • “Best-in-breed” law firms v. full-service law firms • Boutiques and benefits of a lawyer’s practice being at the core of what a firm does • Using Net Promoter Score (NPS) to evaluate law firms • Law firms deciding whether to invest in a practice area • Vision and hunger being the key to starting a successful boutique law • Difference between lawyers who succeed v. fail

20. Bruce MacEwen - Adam Smith, Esq.

This episode features an interview with Sarah Tsou, who is an investment manager for patent litigation at the world’s leading litigation funder, Bentham IMF (now part of Omni Bridgeway Limited). The playbook is simple for deep-pocketed defendants facing lawsuits from patent owners with limited resources. Even if a patent owner has a very strong case, the defendant can just drag the case out long enough until the patent owner and his lawyers run out of resources to continue. At best, the patent owners are forced to settle lawsuits for a fraction of what they think they are owed. Patent litigation funders have changed this calculus by providing patent owners with enough resources. However, as you will hear in this episode, only 1% of cases have the rare mix of merits and economics to receive funding from top litigation funders. This episode is especially relevant because of the pressure many in-house patent litigation attorneys are facing to settle or give up because of shrinking budgets due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Eli and Sarah discuss how patent litigation funding can serve as an attractive alternative for companies that are in this position.

19. Sarah Tsou - Patent Litigation Funding

 This episode of Clause 8 features an interview with Brian Pomper of the Innovation Alliance. Thomas Edison, the Wright Brothers, and Charles Goodyear are some of America’s best-known innovators. Instead of just making and selling the final products, they obtained patents and licensed their innovations to manufacturers. American companies like IBM, Qualcomm, and Dolby have followed this great American tradition of focusing on innovation. However, the patent troll narrative has undermined the idea that innovators should be incentivized and rewarded for their efforts. A string of Supreme Court decisions and the passage of the American Invents Act were part of an effort to deal with the so-called “patent troll” problem. Around the time that the AIA was being debated in Congress, a diverse group of technology companies that focus on research and development formed the Innovation Alliance to educate DC policymakers. And, Brian – a registered patent attorney who worked for several years on Capitol Hill - became the executive director of Innovation Alliance shortly after it was started. During this episode, Brian discusses: • working in Congress and how he became the head of The Innovation Alliance; • the #1 way to improve the patent system; • what unites the Innovation Alliance; • how the Innovation Alliance tried to improve the AIA; • the Obama administration’s continued efforts to restrict patent rights; • how DC became more patent friendly; • the Senate IP subcommittee and why there’s still hope for legislative action to fix patent eligibility; • importance of having grassroots support for legislative efforts; • the impact that the Covid-19 pandemic is having on the patent policy debate and the Open Covid Pledge; and • much more! 

Clause 8, Episode 18: Brian Pomper - The Innovation Alliance

This episode features an interview with trial attorney Frank Jakes - the founder of the Intellectual Property Group at the firm of Johnson Pope in Tampa, FL. There’s a good chance that you have recently seen him questioning Joe Exotic in the Netflix documentary Tiger King. However, even before successfully representing Carole Baskin and Big Cat Rescue, Frank Jakes was already a legendary trial attorney in Tampa who handled lots of cases involving high-profile parties and interesting personalities and won many millions of dollars in verdicts. Many of those cases involved a wide variety of IP rights. During this episode, Franks talks about: • practicing IP law in Tampa, FL; • his acting background; • what makes someone a great trial lawyer; • handling IP cases on a contingency basis; • how IP owners should go about finding the best attorney to represent them; • representing a computer programmer who developed the Wheel of Fortune computer game on a contingency basis; • creatively pursuing contract and misappropriation theories in state court instead of a copyright infringement lawsuit in federal court; • facing opponents with endless resources; • his experience with patent infringement cases; • representing Larry Flynt in a case involving a promise of a $1 million reward for proving who actually killed JFK; • representing Carol Baskin and Big Cat Rescue versus Joe Exotic; • whether he ever feared for his life after the Tiger King case; and • much more!

Clause 8, Episode 17: Frank Jakes - Legendary Trial Attorney

Episode 17: Frank Jakes - Legendary Trial Attorney (handled the "Tiger King" IP litigation)

The Clause 8 Podcast is now part of IPWatchdog.com. Eli Mazour started Clause 8 because he loves talking about intellectual property issues, finding out people's stories, and asking questions. Eli hopes to share his conversations with the most interesting people in the intellectual property and patent community through Clause 8.

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Clause 8

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