The CAFC has requested oral arguments from two amici for its hearing of Ex parte Bilski: Regulatory Datacorp and the Financial Services Industry group.
The RDC argues for a broad interpretation of patentable subject matter, interpreting the term "process" in 35 USC §101 to encompass any art, method, or process, that falls outside of the prohibited subject matter of abstract ideas, physical phenomena or laws of nature. FSI, on the other hand, interprets "process" narrowly, with a process being patentable subject matter only in cases where it results in a physical transformation, or is tied to a machine in a non-conventional manner. A "token" mention of a machine would not, therefore, render a mental process patentable.
The CAFC will hear Bilski en banc at 2:00 PM on May 8, 2008.
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