CLS Bank International v. Alice Corp. Pty. at the Federal Circuit: The Dilemma Presented by Computer Implementation of Abstract Ideas and How the Supreme Court Missed a Chance to Clear It Up

Peske, Nathan
2015
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CLS Bank International v. Alice Corp. Pty. at the Federal Circuit: The Dilemma Presented by Computer Implementation of Abstract Ideas and How the Supreme Court Missed a Chance to Clear It Up

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2015

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Minnesota Journal of Law, Science & Technology

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CLS Bank International v. Alice Corp. Pty. illustrates the conflicted state of case law on the patentability of software. Patents are not allowed to claim abstract ideas. Software, by its very nature, must incorporate abstract ideas. There is currently no defined test for whether a patent that incorporates abstract ideas impermissibly claims those ideas. This case potentially called into doubt the validity of hundreds of thousands of software patents. This Comment analyzes the criteria for determining when a patent impermissibly claims an abstract idea. Section I examines the relevant patent law and controlling cases analyzing patents that incorporate abstract ideas. Section II describes the Federal Circuit’s opinion in CLS Bank International v. Alice Corp. Pty. Section III analyzes the Supreme Court’s subsequent decision and proposes a threeprong test to evaluate whether a patent that incorporates an abstract idea is valid or not. This Comment concludes that the Supreme Court should adopt the proposed three-prong test as a clear standard for evaluating patents that claim an abstract idea.

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Volume 16, Issue 1 (Winter 2015)

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Peske, Nathan. (2015). CLS Bank International v. Alice Corp. Pty. at the Federal Circuit: The Dilemma Presented by Computer Implementation of Abstract Ideas and How the Supreme Court Missed a Chance to Clear It Up. Retrieved from the University Digital Conservancy, https://hdl.handle.net/11299/172107.

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