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ARTICLE · 03 AUGUST 2011

Business Method Patents: How Prepared Are You?

Gowling WLG
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Innovative software and business methods are critical to the success of competitive Canadian businesses, especially those involved in financial services and e-commerce.

CanadaIntellectual Property
Gowlings TV
Gowlings TV
Grant Tisdall
Grant Tisdall
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Innovative software and business methods are critical to the success of competitive Canadian businesses, especially those involved in financial services and e-commerce. Now more than ever, Canadian businesses must consider how business method and software patents will impact their bottom line. Recent court decisions favouring the patentability of business methods and software include the United States Supreme Court's June 28, 2010 decision in Bilski v. Kappos (Bilski) and the Federal Court of Canada's October 14, 2010 decision in Amazon v. Canada (Commissioner of Patents). The position of the courts is in contrast to the widely held misconception that business methods and software cannot be patented. These decisions confirm that, with appropriate limitations, business methods and software are indeed patentable, and these decisions will likely result in an increasing number of similar patents granted by the Canadian and United States patent offices. Considering that the

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