Nonobvious describes a quality in patent law meaning that an invention was not readily apparent. In order to obtain a patent, an invention must be nonobvious. If someone of ordinary skill in a relevant field could easily make the invention,...
intellectual property
nonobviousness
Nonobviousness is a quality in patent law describing something that is not readily apparent. In order to obtain a patent, an invention must be nonobvious. If someone of ordinary skill in a relevant field could easily make the invention, then...
novel
See novelty.
[Last updated in September of 2023 by the Wex Definitions Team]
novelty
Novelty describes something that is new or original. A novel legal issue refers to a question that has not been addressed by the court, leaving the court with no binding precedent on the matter. A novel legal issue is commonly called a case...
one-year rule
A statutory rule that requires a patent application to be filed within one year of public use of the invention, a sale of or offer to sell the invention, or any publication describing the invention. If the applicant fails to file a patent for their...
Online Copyright Infringement Liability Limitation Act
Title II of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, the Online Copyright Infringement Liability Limitation Act, added Section 512 to the Copyright Act, providing four distinct safe harbors for online service providers. If the conduct of a service...
original work of authorship
To receive copyright protection, the work must be, among other things, an original work of authorship. 17 U.S.C § 102 offers examples of works of authorship. These are:
Literary works Musical works and accompanying words Dramatic...orphan works
An orphan work, according to the U.S. Copyright Office, is a work that is protected by copyright but whose copyright owner cannot be readily identified or located. Orphan works interrupt the creation of new work by compromising the users’...
parody
A parody takes a piece of creative work–such as art, literature, or film–and imitates it in an exaggerated, comedic fashion. Parody often serves as a criticism or commentary on the original work, the artist who created it, or something...
patent
A patent grants the patent holder the exclusive right to exclude others from making, using, importing, and selling the patented innovation for a limited period. The U.S. Patent Act, 35 U.S.C. §§ 1 et seq., was enacted by Congress under its...