Duty to Report Misconduct

Speak No Evil: When Must You Self-Report Your Misconduct To The USPTO

Leave a Comment / Reciprocal Discipline, Duty to Report Misconduct, Inequitable Conduct, Legal Malpractice, Office of Enrollment and Discipline / By

A court rules a patent attorney engaged in inequitable conduct. A client sues its trademark attorney for malpractice. A state bar files ethics charges against a patent practitioner. The police arrest a patent agent for domestic violence. A litigator is sanctioned by the PTAB under Rule 11.18 for making a frivolous argument. These are situations […]

Speak No Evil: When Must You Self-Report Your Misconduct To The USPTO Read More »

OED Discipline For IP Practitioners Who Use “Snitch” Threats For Tactical Gain

Leave a Comment / ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct, Duty to Report Misconduct, IP Ethics, OED, Office of Enrollment and Discipline, PTO Ethics Rules, USPTO OED / By

  “You’re building a rat ship here. A vessel for seagoing snitches” – Al Pacino, Scent of a Woman You represent a patentee in a highly contentious litigation against an accused infringer.  The parties hate each other, and the gloves came off months ago–if they were ever on in the first place. Then extraordinarily you

OED Discipline For IP Practitioners Who Use “Snitch” Threats For Tactical Gain Read More »

The “Rat Rule” And USPTO Discipline – Reporting Ethical Violations To OED (Part 1)

Leave a Comment / ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct, Duty to Report Misconduct, IP Ethics, OED, Office of Enrollment and Discipline, PTO Ethics Rules / By

“Never rat out your friends. And always keep your mouth shut.” – Robert De Niro, GoodFellas I am of Sicilian ancestry, raised in an Italian household in an Italian neighborhood in Brooklyn.  Despite this upbringing, it was not until I was an adult when I first learned about the “Code of Silence” known as “omertà.”

The “Rat Rule” And USPTO Discipline – Reporting Ethical Violations To OED (Part 1) Read More »

Scroll to Top