OBWB @ CIPAC 2026
Representing OBWB's Hangzhou and Beijing offices, Tso Han-Mei and Shaoping Zhong were delighted to attend the 15th China Intellectual Property Annual Conference (CIPAC 2026).
WIPO Launches Its First Global Forum on Intellectual Property and Artificial Intelligence
On November 9 and 10, 2026, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) will host the inaugural Global Forum on IP and AI in Geneva, in a hybrid format allowing participation both in person and remotely.
OBWB @ IPO 2026
Jeffrey Bergman, Carlyn Burton, and Matthew Madsen, Ph.D., look forward to attending the 2026 IPO Annual Meeting.
The $25 Million Blue-Washing Blunder: Wyland v. FIFA
When commercial property rights collide with statutory moral rights, which one wins? This is the question at the center of a federal lawsuit related to intellectual property, real estate law and sports entertainment.
When Is a Provisional Application's Filing Date the "Prior Art" Date of a Patent or Published Application?
In Dental Monitoring SAS v. Align Technology, Inc., the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit addressed the crucial question: under what circumstances can a patent or published application be assigned the earlier filing date of a provisional application for purposes of qualifying as prior art under AIA 35 U.S.C. § 102(a)(2) and § 102(d)(2). The court held that the provisional application must provide written description support under § 112(a) for at least one published claim of the corresponding reference before the reference is entitled to the earlier filing date of the provisional application. As a result, the court vacated the Patent Trial and Appeal Board's previous obviousness decision, thus rejecting the Board's broader standard of prior art determination.
UAE Strikes a New Chord in IP Protection
The UAE is taking another significant step toward strengthening its intellectual property framework and supporting its creative economy. Effective December 1, 2026, businesses and organizations that use copyrighted music commercially across the UAE will be required to obtain the appropriate licenses and pay music royalties...
#BestLawyers2027
We are delighted to announce that all four OBWB name partners have been recognized in the 2027 edition of The Best Lawyers in America®. Congratulations to Jonathan Osha, Jeffrey Bergman, Yuichi Watanabe, and Carlyn Burton on this well-deserved honor.
The Bahamas to Join the PCT as 159th Contracting State
Effective August 19, 2026, The Bahamas will officially become the 159th Contracting State of the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), significantly modernizing the country's patent framework.
