Pam, I'm confused, it seems as if you're saying that the USPTO isn't part of the Executive Branch of government.
Am I confused about my civics here? I did pay attention in Civics class.
@Pamela Chestek, BTW, I also don't understand your comment that the "system is working as designed", which means it's not a hack like copyleft.
You're saying by implication that you don't believe copyleft is using the system in an appropriate way, which seems a disturbing view. Could you elaborate?
I agree with Richard, but I'll add another comment. PTO judges are bound by the Code of Judicial Conduct, which requires independence, integrity and impartiality. Just because they're part of the Executive Branch doesn't mean they can be told what to do. As a lawyer, my professional code of conduct said I had a fiduciary duty to Red Hat and my boss couldn't tell me to do anything contrary to that. Of course, I could get fired for not doing what my boss said. :-)
You misunderstood my comment. I think of copyleft as using the law to accomplish the opposite of what it was designed for, a "hack" (and one that works). Here, the law worked exactly as designed, it provides a means to strike a mark from the register and that's what happened. You seem to be suggesting that I was using "hack" as a pejorative and I was not.
You misunderstood my comment. I think of copyleft as using the law to accomplish the opposite of what it was designed for, a "hack" (and one that works). Here, the law worked exactly as designed, it provides a means to strike a mark from the register and that's what happened. You seem to be suggesting that I was using "hack" as a pejorative and I was not.
As did i.