With Patents becoming a core part of existing economic ecosystem, particularly for Software, Information Technology, IoT, Embedded Systems, and Telecom industries, exploitation of Patent Portfolio has become an industry in itself, especially with the cost of development and protection of the portfolio being enormous. It is therefore crucial to understand important Patent issues, not only by In-House IP Counsels but even more importantly by R&D Scientists so as to minimize efforts in Patent Development, and maximize commercial gains. It is crucial to understand nitty-gritty’s of patent portfolio creation, protection, management, and commercialization, without which there would always remain an for a serious blow either from an infringement perspective or from a patent invalidation perspective or the portfolio would remain under-commercialized. Exclusivity rights granted through patents can only be utilized if there is comprehensive knowledge of various patent related issues, more so when National Patent Laws & Practices relating to prosecution practices, drafting practices, examination practices, enforcement practices and commercialization practices differ substantially across geographies. Furthermore, with growing clarity concerns on Software Patentability in India, and new guidelines coming out for Computer related Inventions (CRI), it is imperative to understand how such guidelines are actually being implemented in real-life Patent applications. Sessions of the Seminar would also help understand how Indian Companies Strategize in view of the dynamic policy changes in the software industry. Lastly, with a number of cases being filed in 2015-16 on FRAND issues, it is very critical for all concerned stakeholders to understand how such litigations may impact them, how standard patents are being interpreted and challenged these days, along with how Competition Commission and other like regulatory bodies are handling complex royalty rate and unfair competition issues. The Seminar would answer clearly on all issues mentioned above and much more.

The proposed seminar is represented by a very strong and top- notch line-up of speakers from Law Firms and the Industry, wherein such speakers come from a variety of different backgrounds such as from Telecom, Software, Cellular/Mobile Technology, and Electronics Domains, and therefore offer a unique value proposition to the seminar attendees. The Seminar features presentation of important patent issues, as mentioned in this brochure. The speakers are a unique gathering of Patent Attorneys and In- House/Legal Counsels from leading Indian Corporates, who have extensive years of experience in their professional fields and are well acquainted with the Industry’s need. These speakers will put across, to the delegates, a real insight of Patent Laws, Interpretation of CRI guidelines, FRAND based issues for Standard Patents, best practices for prosecuting, licensing and litigating Patents/IPs, and Portfolio Development Processes/ Strategies.

This is an opportunity when Patent Experts, Litigators, and Legal Counsels from varied backgrounds and having enormous expertise carrying different perceptions would be interacting with limited delegates and would answer to any question that the delegates may have.

IIPRD is a premier IP Consulting and Licensing Firm with a diversified business practice providing services in the domain of Commercialization, Valuation, Licensing, Transfer of Technology and Due-Diligence of Intellectual Property Assets along with providing complete IP and Patent Analytics, Transactional, and Litigation Support Services to Indian and International Corporates, Licensing Firms, and Global Law Firms. IIPRD has been established precisely to assist business houses in strategizing their growth by leveraging their IPR’s through effective Creation, Promotion, Protection, and Commercialization of IP. IIPRD has a legacy of over fifteen years of existence, and is among the first Indian IP Firms to have core focus on Commercialization, Technology Transfer, and Licensing. IIPRD as strong team of over 110 professionals focus in complete Patent Support and Technology Consulting Matters ranging from conducting all types of Patent Searches, Research and Analytics, Preparation/Prosecution Support, Landscape Analysis, and Claim Charts/Infringement Analysis/Litigation Support.

Khurana & Khurana, Advocates and IP Attorneys (K&K) is more than a full service Intellectual Property and Commercial Law firm. K&K was formed in the year 2007 with a very firm focus of providing end-to-end IP Prosecution/ Litigation and Commercial Law services in a manner that is Corporate centric and follows stringent delivery practices that are consistent and are above defined quality standards. K&K works closely with its sister concern IIPRD, both of which supplement each other in order to provide end-to-end IP Legal and Commercialization/Licensing services to over 3000 Corporates. K&K is a team of over 110 professionals spread across 7 Offices in India, and has strong rankings from Legal 500, MIP, IAM, Chambers, Asia IP, among others.Our team of IP Attorneys/Practitioners, having high level of technical and legal competence, gives us the right competitive edge and positioning, as a law firm focused on creating immense IP value for our clients. K&K through its experienced and qualified team of Attorneys/ Practitioners, across Technology and Legal Domains, gives a rare synergy of legal opinion, out-of-box thinking for protection of ideas/IP’s and entrepreneurial spirits to its client base.

Sughrue Mion is one of the world’s leading intellectual property law firms managing traditional and nontraditional intellectual property rights, for about five decades, with a wide range of clients around the world. Sughrue’s more than 100 lawyers protect ideas- all ideas- and for the last 50 years have been helping their clients to develop, obtain, protect and leverage their intellectual property rights in technology areas ranging from a submicroscopic sequence of DNA to a vast constellation of satellites circling the globe. Sughrue’s Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology, Chemical attorneys are trained in technical disciplines that include molecular and biology, biophysics, pharmaceuticals, chemistry, immunology, virology, genetics and agriculture biotechnology. Their experts are particularly well versed in drafting claims to ensure the broadest possible coverage and have a long established expertise in handling patent interference proceedings that may be critical to determining basic patent rights in new areas of biotechnological and pharmaceutical industries.

Keltie is an intellectual property firm that’s renowned for its excellence, earned by putting talented, energetic and principled people at its heart. Based in Europe but with global reach, Keltie specialises in IP law and management. The essence of Keltie goes far beyond what they do. Keltie provides patent services, trademark and design services. Keltie’s attorneys work on every technology and in all commercial fields.

09:00-09:15: Registration
Session-I 09:15-10:15: Tarun Khurana: Key Patent Office Decisions on Software/Electronics Patent Applications in 2017
10:15-10:30: Tea Break
Session-II 1030-1145: Chid Iyer: Key Patent Prosecution Strategies in US with focus on handling 101 and 112 Issues
Session-III 1145-1300: Robert McDougall: Key Patent Prosecution Strategies in EPO in Software, Electronics, and Mechanical Domains
Session-IV 1300-1400: Vinod Khurana: Copyright Litigation Issues in Software Domain – Exemplary Case Studies 1400-1500: Lunch

Chid received a B. Tech in Chemical Engineering from IIT, Bombay in 1984, MS in Chemical Engineering from the University of Akron and MS in Computer Science from the University of Tennessee Space Institute. He received his JD from Georgetown University in 1997. Chid is a partner of the International Law Firm of Sughrue Mion and is involved in all aspects of patent practice including litigation, prosecution, and client counseling in a variety of technologies with a focus on chemical and pharmaceutical. Chid has prepared and prosecuted over 100 applications for a leading research laboratory.

Robert is part of Keltie’s IT, Telecoms and Electronics team. He primarily advises on patent issues, including prosecuting and drafting new patent applications for ongstanding businesses and start-ups. Robert also conducts numerous IP audits for SMEs and provides IP consultancy and training to different organisations. His technical background is in physics, optics and electronics engineering, particularly specializing in photonics and quantum technologies and software. Other fields of technology that Robert works in include general mechanical devices, semiconductors, electronics, software, aerospace, enewable energy and medical devices. Prior to becoming a patent attorney, Robert worked as a photonics research scientist for Corning Inc. and as a consultant scientist for a start-up S.M.E. He has numerous peer-reviewed scientific papers and is an inventor on 5 patent applications.

Vinod is a Senior Partner at IIPRD and Khurana & Khurana, IP Attorneys. Vinod, along with heading the IP Litigation team, which represents some of top Indian and Global Business Brands on Passing Off, Counterfeiting, copyright Infringement and Fraud Investigation/White-Collar Crime Issues. Vinod also the Head of the IP Commercialization/Licensing Team and overlooks at Valuation and Negotiation of all major In-Out-Licensing Deals at IIPRD. Vinod has been in the field of Business. Legal Finance for the last 45 years and has been closely associated and representing top Indian and International Corporate Houses for litigation, Licensing their Technologies and other Intellectual Property matters . Vinod has also been researching and educating on fighting thefts and frauds of Intellectual Properties and white-collar crimes, by practicing a mix of Law, Intellectual Property, Accounting, Ethics and Criminology coupled with his professional qualification being a B.Com, PGDFA, MBA, AICWA, CFA, LLB among other specialization qualifications in Investigation and Commercialization of Intellectual Property and has represented numerous corporate for devising their Prosecution and Litigation Strategies such as Indian Oil Corporation, ITC, Bharti, Matrix Cellular among many others. Vinod has also undertaken various dedicated Workshops and Seminars for well established corporate such as ONGC, GAIL, Wockhardt, IOC, ITC, TVS Group, CSIR, among others.

Tarun has over 16 years of experience in a broad range of IP subject matters and is the Co-Founding Partner and Patent Attorney of Khurana & Khurana, which is among the Leading IP Practices in India with 10 Offices and over 180 Practitioners. Tarun is among the top 12 Patent Prosecution Practitioners in India as rated by IAM, ranked among IAM 300/1000, and has executed numerous assignments related to exercises of Patent Portfolio Creation, Protection, Prosecution, Litigation, Valuation and Commercialization for Indian and International Corporates. Tarun focuses on the Patent Preparation, Prosecution Electronics, Patent Valuation, Commercialization, and Litigation opinions for Computer-Implemented, and Mechanical subject matters. Tarun has a Bachelor’s in Computer Science Engineering, a Masters in Software Systems, Bachelors in Law, an MBA from IIM Lucknow, and is in pursuit of his Ph.D.