Jeffrey Berkowitz

Jeffrey Berkowitz heads up the electrical and computer technology group of US patent lawyers Finnegan Henderson. He specialises in patent prosecution, client counselling and litigation involving business method and software-related inventions. He has overseen the drafting of hundreds of patent applications for electrical, electronics, telecommunications and software-based technologies.

Jeffrey has written and spoken extensively on business method and software-related patents. He has chaired and lectured for the Practicing Law Institute, the Patent Resources Group and the University of Washington Law School. During the past two years, Jeffrey has also lectured at EuroForum's programme "New Developments in U.S. Patent Law" and IBC's programme on "E-Commerce and Business Method Patents."

Prior to graduating from law school, Jeffrey was a computer programmer with IBM where he also taught employees how to operate microcomputers and a variety of application programs designed for microcomputers. While in law school, he was the managing editor of the Law Review and received several American Jurisprudence Awards. He has a BA in Computer Science from Rutgers University.

Synopsis

Impact of the Web on Intellectual Property

IP in the US has benefited from the Web in many ways. Not unexpectedly, the Web has provided a facility for distribution of much of the IP-related information. Patent Offices use the Web to distribute information on published patent applications, issued patents, and materials related to the prosecution of applications. The Web has also improved access to Court decisions related to patents and other IP. All of this is critical to the practice of IP law, and without the Web this information would only be available at the Patent Offices themselves or from other limited and possibly expensive resources. But the Web has also provided a facility for the sale and distribution of products and for new types of services. It is this latter aspect of the Web that has had the most impact of IP, particularly in the United States. In this regard the Web has introduced the world to--what some contend is a new form of IP, namely, "business methods." During this session, Mr. Berkowitz will review the patentability of such business methods in the US. He will address the treatment of patented business methods by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office as well as the U.S. Courts, with a particular focus on the Web-based business methods.