Like writing with a broken pencil, our patent system without the double-patenting doctrine would be pointless. Yet the doctrine is perhaps among the least understood of the many aspects of the patent laws. And during the past 20 years, the doctrine increasingly was pushed to the fringes of obscurity. But recent decisions by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit have raised the doctrine from the ashes to take its rightful place as a pillar of our patent system.
Section 101 of the Patent Act states that a person “may obtain a patent” on “any new” invention. In other words, an inventor may obtain one, and only one, patent per invention. The inventor has the exclusive right to the invention during the term of the patent. After the patent term expires, the invention is dedicated to the public, to complete the quid pro quo that justifies the grant of exclusivity.
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