Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, and Research Corporation Technologies, Inc. v. Pharmachemie B.V.

My colleagues have peered deep into the recesses of patent examination, plucked out a routine and unreviewable administrative procedure — the “restriction requirement” for facilitating examination of complex cases — -and created a new standard of administrative review and a new ground of patent invalidity. I must, respectfully, dissent.

Whether or not the patent applicant here in suit was given proper or consistent restriction requirements by the various examiners, the issuance of these actions was entirely discretionary with the Commissioner. When the examiners accepted the applicant’s…