Companies may purchase third party technology from time to time. When acquiring patents from outside the company, or from related entities, there are important factors to be considered. Here are certain issues for buyers when preparing a patent acquisition agreement.    The buyer should first determine that all the record owners of the purchased Intellectual Property are party to the patent acquisition agreement. A particular patent may be assigned to a subsidiary of the seller. In that case, the buyer must require that the subsidiary be a party to the agreement and the subsidiary is directly obligated to transfer ownership of that patent...

Companies may purchase third party technology from time to time. When acquiring patents from outside the company, or from related entities, there are important factors to be considered. Here are certain issues for buyers when preparing a patent acquisition agreement.    The buyer should first determine that all the record owners of the purchased Intellectual Property are party to the patent acquisition agreement. A particular patent may be assigned to a subsidiary of the seller. In that case, the buyer must require that the subsidiary be a party to the agreement and the subsidiary is directly obligated to transfer ownership of that patent...

From left to right: David L. Yaussy and Joseph A. "Jay" Ford of Spilman Thomas & Battle, and Adrienne Worthy, executive director of Legal Aid of West Virginia Charleston, W.Va. — Spilman Thomas & Battle (Spilman) recently received the 2022 Distinguished Pro Bono Award from Legal Aid of West Virginia. The Distinguished Pro Bono Award recognizes a lawyer or law firm whose pro bono efforts in a given year have gone “above and beyond” the call of duty and are deserving of special recognition...

Charleston, W.Va. — Spilman Thomas & Battle (Spilman) announced that 13 of the firm’s West Virginia-based lawyers were recognized by Super Lawyers for 2022. The objective of the Super Lawyers selection process is to create a credible, comprehensive and diverse listing of outstanding attorneys from more than 70 practice areas. The annual selections are made using a patented multiphase process that includes a statewide survey of lawyers, an independent research evaluation of candidates, and peer reviews by practice area. No more than 5 percent of a state’s lawyers are named to the Super Lawyers list. More information can be found at www.superlawyers.com...