The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1912-12-07
NEW RULES FOR
 PATENT LAW PRACTICE

The United States Supreme Court has just issued a new set of equity rules which Is pronounced by the pat ent bar to be the most revolutionary document issued of late years.
 Patent Attorney Christian M. New man of the firm of Chamberlain & Newman has Just called our attention to a new set of equity rules issued by the Supreme Court of the United States which will come into effect Feb. l. 1918, and which deals solely with the question of patent litigation It has for it's object the elimination of waste of time in pleadings, the say ing of money to Htigants in costs, and 5y s1mnlifying the, the pEocedqfe ITO ire in feet of giving the poor patentees better opportunity to establish their rights The new formF of rules will serve to shorten patent litigation full ly one-half and will reduce the cost to a mere fraction of what has been usual As for example MT. Newman cited that under the new rules a case like the great Seldon automo bile suit which was in the Courts for five years testimony that cost one dollar, a page can be disposed of under the new rules in six months and would prob ably not require more than one vol
 The new rules will obviously re- quire more energy on the part of the confined In the matter of limitation of scope and time of pleadings- The patent procedure under the new rules will be reduced as briefly outlined be of complaint the clerk shall issue the process of subpoena thereon There that the defendant shall file his ans uer in Court or before the expi- ration of twenty days after service If service ds accom- pIished and the ans wer not filed the complainant is en- titled to Q decree pro confesso. The form of the bill of complaint is much i've sections The caption, brief statement to give the Court jurisdic- ton. the facts relied upon by the Pisintin tilg onltfing all Ia[asr 1o;nd q1 GT fht. action. and a-wayer for relief
 The most important change in the rules is in tzss Els 4S is whinh sd,it2 fHe re testimony shall be taken orally in op- en scourt, except as otherwise provid- ea by. statutes of these rules. The Court shan pass upon the adn1issi- biiity of all evidence offered as in actions at law When evidence is of against whom the ruling is made ex- cepts thereto at the time, the Court shall take and report so much there Of or make such statement respect ing it, the form sin which it was of fered. the objec ton made, the ruling and tine exception If the appellate evidence should Nave been admitted. it shall not reverse the decree unless 1t he clearly of the opinion that ma terfal prejudice will result from an safffrrnarce in which event it shall di- rect such further steps as Justice may require
 Where dispositions are allowed in ex- csptional cases or ordered by statute Sn patent cases, those of the plaintiff must be filed in forty days, those Of the defense in twenty days more and rebutting dcpositorss within fifteen days thereafter Cross examinations are ordered 10 be held in open Court where right
 Attorney Newman says that there will also be a big saving in account ing Reference 10 masters and chan cery shall be the exception and not the rule. The form of decree will also be shortened and simp1ifed. The master and other prior proceedings shall not be recited. On appeal to the United States Circuit Court of Appeals the rules require breEity and relexa1rce on rain of having the osts of Irrelevant matter taxed against the party at fault The rule places at forueys within it's scope and the Court is ordered to issue rules against the offending members of the bar.
 The old rules of equity are abrogat- ec and the new set effective as of Feh
 The rules as to the taking of testi- E=--<~ h 0D~n COsx-t tEe omission Of =--Tg Vr--ninous recoros and the sInpiifcation of appeal procedure will GndoTfbtedIs-. save thouSauGs of dollars a year to ltigants- While the above wo1fd tend to operate to the material advantage of the litigants Dy reason of the above saving, yet 1t Is shown ttat if patent litigation could he han died more expeditiopsly and inexpen- Efveiy much more of it would be ken up. While both the attorneys and the Courts wilIszpeslla ps not set as much out Of the Individual cases under the new practice yet it is believed that on the whole there will probably be a greater number of cases and conse- Queneiy fully as much work to be Goue under tIe. preseaf SYsfer1-