The IP Practice in Latin America Committee ("LAC") will conduct a solo business meeting at the 2012 Spring Meeting, to be held in Austin, TX between May 10th and 12th. LAC will meet to discuss issues relevant to the committee's activities, including an update on important IP issues occurring in South America.  Mr. Ignacio Manuel Sanchez Echage from the Buenos Aires, Argertina firm of Marval, O'farrell & Mairal will make the presentation.  The committee meeting is scheduled for Friday, May 11th at 4:30pm in Meeting Room 402, on the 4th Floor.  However, members and attendees are encouraged to check the exact time and location once you arrive in Austin as the time and location are subject to change at the discretion of the AIPLA. As well, LAC will be discussing and providing details on the confirmed August 2012 trip to Brazil to coincide with the annual meeting of the Brazilian IP Association (ABPI).  The specific trip itinerary is now available having been previously sent to the committee membership by e-mail.  The trip itinerary will also be posted on the micro-web site for LAC.  Those persons intending to join us on the trip are encouraged to make their plane reservations to Brazil now.  Our Vice-Chairman, Mr. Joaquim Goulart, will be on hand at the Austin committee meeting to answer any specific questions and also provide additional information about the hotels, airfare between So Paulo and Rio de Janeiro and also how to register for the ABPI annual meeting.  Finally, LAC will be opening the floor to discuss a 2013 trip potentially scheduled for Mexico City.Afterwards, the IP Practice in Latin America Committee, as its tradition continues, will retire to a local establishment to have an opportunity to socialize in a more relaxed setting and invites any and all AIPLA attendees you wish to join us.  The LAC likes everyone to please remember though that this social event is not an AIPLA or LAC sponsored event and so therefore each person who wishes to join us will be responsible for his and her own drinks and food.  See you in Austin!  

  Women in IP Networking Event   You Are Invited! AIPLA's 2012 Cross-Country Women in IP Networking Event May 2, 2012   We are thrilled to invite to you the AIPLA Cross-Country Women in IP Networking Event. The following firms have generously agreed to host the 2012 regional events. To register and learn more, please email the individual listed under “contact" and they will provide information regarding registration and details about the event in your area. We look forward to speaking with everyone on our traditional conference call across all locations at 8:30 PM EDT. If you have general questions about this national event please contact the chair. Chair: Carine M. Doyle, Lewis, Rice & Fingersh, L.C.  314 444-1384, cdoyle@lewisrice.com For more information see the full announcement here. ​ 

​The New Lawyers Committee's newsletter, Business Casual, is for NLC members, by NLC members, and focuses on member perspectives, committee activities and volunteer opportunities.  Content submissions welcome! Business_Casual_Spring_2012.pdf

All voting members should have received an email with link to vote on a legislative proposal to revise the remedies section of the Lanham Act.  PLEASE VOTE.  Please contact Jen Kovalcik at jkovalcik@stites.com for more information.​

The AIPLA Chemical Practice Committee is pleased to present this free webinar on how to address the application of Restriction Requirements to Markush groups. The link to the recording of the webinar is below. You will need to complete a brief registration form (including your AIPLA member number) to access the recording: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/688353121 Restriction Requirements are expressly prohibited within a Markush claim.  Yet, the USPTO keeps issuing them.  During this webinar, Bob Titus (Eli Lilly) and Brian Lathrop (Drinker) will discuss the following: • The Unique Problems Markush Groups Present During Examination • The Tension Between Restriction and Election-of-Species Requirements • The New Unity of Invention Rejection • Examination and Prosecution—Practical Problems With Markush Claims • Proposed Alternative Approaches • Strategic Considerations There will be no CLE credit for this free webinar. Title: Restriction of Markush Claims: Theory and Reality Date: Tuesday, April 3, 2012 Time: 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM EDT ​

We are pleased to welcome Stephanie Bald as our new Vice Chair.  Stephanie has been a valuable contributor to our committee and most recently has spearheaded the case summary reports and updates over the past year.  

Thanks to all our volunteers for contributing to the initial 2012 Trademark Case Summary Report​ which is now available on our committee page.

To illustrate and study the diversity of utility standards across a range of jurisdictions, the committee has put together a FREE one-day symposium with speakers who are experts in US, European, Canadian, Japanese, and international patent laws will compareand contrast the utility requirements for patents in the various jurisdictions, including: 1) statutory and treaty-based requirements;2) interpretation of those requirements bycourts;3) evidentiary requirements for demonstratingutility; and4) discussion of recent cases that illustratecomparable and divergent approaches. The program will be held at the University of Ottowa.   Visit the Symposium's website for more details.  

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  If you would like to hear a recording of the Webinar that took place on February 28, 2012, you may do so by clicking here:   https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/566656904   The powerpoint slides are availabe in pdf version in the Documents section below.​