NAPP Webinar: Design Patent Prosecution Overview & Misconceptions

Description

Description

Join Christopher Santone, Design Patent Agent at McAndrews, Held & Malloy, Ltd., for a comprehensive session covering (1) an overview of design patent prosecution—including key distinctions between design and utility patents, important case law that has shaped modern design practice, and strategic portfolio structuring considerations—and (2) common misconceptions surrounding design patents, such as scope of protection, functionality limitations, and obviousness standards following LKQ. This program will provide practical insight into how design patents function in today’s IP landscape and how to leverage them effectively as part of a broader protection strategy.

Learning Objectives:

This webinar will provide attendees with a practical and strategic understanding of how design patents operate in today’s intellectual property landscape.

Participants will learn about:

The fundamentals of design patent prosecution, including how design patents differ from utility patents in scope, procedure, and enforcement.

Key case law developments that have shaped modern design patent practice, including recent shifts in obviousness standards and functionality analysis.

Strategic approaches to building and structuring design patent portfolios, including continuation practice and embodiment planning.

Common misconceptions surrounding design patents, including misunderstandings about scope of protection, ornamental limitations, and how courts evaluate infringement and validity.

Speaker:

Christopher Santone is a Design Patent Agent at McAndrews, where he focuses on design patent prosecution and strategy. With over a decade of experience as an industrial designer—and as the first individual to pass the USPTO Design Patent Bar exam—Christopher brings a uniquely practical perspective to helping clients identify protectable design assets and navigate the design patent process. His background spans concept development, product innovation, digital manufacturing, and intellectual property strategy. Prior to joining McAndrews, he served as Director of Industrial Design at ATLASON Studio, leading a multidisciplinary team that earned the 2023 Cooper Hewitt National Product Design Award. Over the course of his career, Christopher has designed and developed more than 100 consumer products across industries ranging from furniture to electronics and is named as a co-inventor on 17 design patents and one utility patent.