Getting to Yes at the Patent Office

In this episode of IPWatchdog Unleashed, we discuss patent prosecution with the director of intellectual property at one of the top five filing companies in the world. Sivon Kalminov is the Director the Intellectual Property Division at Canon USA, where he is responsible for managing the Division’s day-to-day patent prosecution work, which includes overseeing both the patent prosecution and administration departments. He also provides support on patent litigation matters, contract matters, and general U.S. patent law-related advice to various domestic and international Canon companies and subsidiaries. He is a current member of the California State Bar Intellectual Property Section, and a past Chair of the Section.

Our wide-ranging conversation took place in person on October 1, at IPWatchdog LIVE, shortly after Sivon spoke on a panel about strategies for getting to yes when working with patent examiners.During our conversation, we discuss the unique set-up of the Canon intellectual property department, which sees Sivon and his team representing Canon USA, but also representing various Canon entities from around the world as they enter the United States to obtain patents on previously filed applications. We also discuss the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) switching from EFS-Web to Patent Center, the unceremonious death of the After Final Consideration 2.0 program, examiners raising Section 112 and Section 101 issues for the first time in a Notice of Allowance, strategies for working with examiners, the importance of interviews to get on the same page with examiners, when and whether it is appropriate to appeal examiner rejections to the Board, and much more.