January 6, 2012

Colloquium Topic: Weathering the Storm: Patents in the Cloud

Recent U.S. court decisions have made both obtaining and enforcing software-related patents a more complex undertaking than before--one which is further complicated by distributing the related computing systems into a cloud environment. The lecture will first review the current legal landscape for enforcing patents for software-related inventions, then discuss how the highest appeals court for patents may be changing that landscape once it decides two cases currently under review. Best practices in drafting software patents so as to be enforceable in this dynamic legal and technical environment will be discussed.

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Colloquium Speaker: Richard Gilly

Richard Gilly is a partner with Seyfarth Shaw Attorneys in Washington, DC. Mr. Gilly has litigated patent matters for high-tech clients for almost 25 years. Mr. Gilly has developed successful defenses for a Fortune 100 computer company, as well as for communication companies and computer system providers. In his role as lead patent counsel, he has obtained summary judgment of non-infringement for a network service provider, saving the client from significant costs and potential damages. For another communication system provider, Mr. Gilly developed and brought a strategic patent infringement countersuit which lead to prompt case settlement. For still another high-technology system manufacturer, Mr. Gilly led a careful investigation, uncovering facts and circumstances which achieved a successful defense against a larger competitor. He has also served as lead counsel in several medical technology related patent litigations which achieved desired client objectives against accused competitors.