Court Spells Out New Patent Rules
The Supreme Court delivered new guidelines Tuesday for fights between manufacturers and makers of copycat products.

The court threw out a decision that critics said could hurt an estimated 1.2 million existing patents. And the high court said that judges should have discretion in settling disagreements over revised patents.

At the heart of the case is the 19th century ``doctrine of equivalents,'' which weighs the rights of patent holders against those of competitors who may change or improve a design. The appeals court had said that if an inventor narrowed some aspects of a patent application, whatever elements were changed would not be protected.

Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, writing for the court, said that decision went too far and that only Congress can make such broad changes to patent law.

``Fundamental alternations in these rules risk destroying the legitimate expectations of inventors in their property,'' Kennedy wrote.

Kennedy said judges should have flexibility to examine patent application changes and decide how they affect claims of patent infringement.

Kennedy noted that the patent system rewards innovations with temporary monopolies. ``The monopoly is a property right; and like any property right, its boundaries should be clear,'' he wrote.

The ruling affect patent fights over everything from cars to medicines.
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/national/AP-Scotus-Patents.html