Portal:Supreme Court of the United States

“ The Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (AIA) bars a person from receiving a patent on an invention that was “in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.” 35 U. S. C. §102 (a) (1) . This case requires us to decide whether the sale of an invention to a third party who is contractually obligated to keep the invention confidential places the invention “on sale” within the meaning of §102 (a) . ”

“ To further the goal of “motivating innovation and enlightenment” while also “avoiding monopolies that unnecessarily stifle competition,” Pfaff, 525 U. S., at 63, Congress has imposed several conditions on the “limited opportunity to obtain a property right in an idea,” Bonito Boats, supra, at 149. ”