by Darin Gibby
“I think we both made a huge mistake,” Janice said the moment they were alone at the table. “Did you hear the latest from Wyckoff?”
Addy shook her head. As Quinn had requested, she hadn’t been following the gossip networks.
“They hired Jerry Cochran from over at Bloomberg to take your place. And rumor has it Perry landed an electric motor company as a new client. Don’t want to add insult to injury, but thought you should know.”
Addy remained stoic, refusing to let Janice have the upper hand. But her insinuation was filled with reality. Perry had replaced her. She couldn’t go back, even if she wanted. Since she had nothing to do, she also yearned for law firm life. Since filing the applications, her only responsibility was to entertain Janice and answer patent law questions from Sung-soo.
“I hear they are so busy they are all working weekends,” Janice said. “At least they could use me.”
Addy was tired of the babysitting and figured that not having a paralegal would be better than this.
“Maybe you should go back,” Addy finally conceded. “How many stock options would you give up?”
Janice slammed down her menu rattling the silverware. “Stock options? What options would those be?”
Addy cringed. She’d assumed Janice was given a lucrative package with stock options like herself. “I’m sorry. I just thought they gave you some.”
“Zippo,” Janice said forming a zero with her thumb and index finger. “And you know what else? Sung-soo is doing more than just eavesdropping on us.”
“What makes you say that?”
“He’s been logging in using my credentials and surfing the Patent Office databases.”
“Are you sure?”
“I’m not stupid. I know how to check my history log. He spends almost all night on their site.”
“Maybe that explains why there’s never any fresh coffee. What was he searching?”
“Looking at a whole bunch of patent applications. All fuel cell stuff.”
“Probably just some prior art searching,” Addy said, trying to sound unconcerned. It was one more thing to hash out with Quinn.
They ate their salads, mostly in silence. Finally Addy spoke. “I really need you to stay. It won’t be long before we will be busy again. We can make a big difference in the world.”
Janice buoyed up her curly hair. “I thought you said I should go.”
“I didn’t mean it. Please don’t leave. Give it a few more weeks. It will get better.”
“You said that last time I wanted to go back to Wyckoff.”
“Tell you what. Give it a couple more weeks, and if it doesn’t get better, we may both be looking for a new job.”
Addy was so involved in her discussion that she didn’t even notice the man seated two tables away wearing a black fedora hat pulled down low and a gray, wool jacket.
Agent Long waited for them to pull out of the parking lot, then paid his bill and climbed into his Buick. Before starting the ignition, he took another note. He’d been seated too far away to overhear their conversation, but he could tell from their animated tones that the discussion was at times heated.
But that didn’t bother him. His assignment from the Justice Department wasn’t to eavesdrop, just to see what times Addy was at WTG. His colleagues back at the office were monitoring her internet usage. They simply needed him to confirm that she was in fact at WTG.
20
ADDY FLUNG HER purse onto her chair, then strode down the hall and barged into Sung-soo’s office. He frantically grabbed for his mouse and began clicking rapidly. The monitor was facing away from Addy, so she didn’t get to see what he was trying to hide.
“You must knock,” Sung-soo spat out.
“And you’ve got to let me know how to contact Quinn. I’ve got to talk to him now.”
“It’s the middle of the night in Korea.”
“Quinn’s a night owl.” She picked up a phone on Sung-soo’s desk. “Get me a phone number, now,” Addy insisted.
“I’m not supposed to call him.”
Addy strode over to his computer, hefted it up and threatened to send it crashing to the floor.
“If you know what’s good for you, don’t do that.”
“If you know what’s good for you, get me on the phone with Quinn.”
Sung-soo reached into his desk and pulled out a mobile phone. “Calm down Addy. I’ll let you call him, but we need to use this phone.” He depressed a series of buttons and handed Addy the phone.
Addy pointed to the door. “I want to be alone.”
“Very well,” Sung-soo said, scooting a laptop from his desk. Addy knew he’d be listening to her, but at least she didn’t have to see his smirking grin.
After several rings, Quinn’s groggy voice answered. “What do you want Sung-soo?”
“It’s me, Addy. We need to talk.”
“I heard about the two applications. I’m a little bit concerned.”
“You’re concerned. What about me? This is my job. I think I need to go to another state with another computer and do some more filings. They’ve obviously latched on to this computer address.”
“Impossible,” Quinn said. “Sung-soo makes sure it generates a new address each time you log on.”
“And that’s another thing. Sung-soo is using Janice’s login to scour the Patent Office files. What is going on?”
The line went silent.
“Don’t try to tell me you don’t know,” Addy continued. “We’re not stupid.”
“Yeah, I know about that. Sung-soo’s a wannabe patent lawyer. He stays up all night monitoring our competitors’ patents. That’s all.”
“That’s a thirty-minute job, once a week. What’s he doing the rest of the time, viewing porn?”
Quinn chuckled. “It’s a little more complicated than that. You already know the Patent Office is watching my applications and trying to stop them from being approved.”
“Yes.”
“Your government is doing more than just trying to keep my ideas secret. They are stealing the technology. Remember those other cases that I told you about? We put bogus technology in them. A few days later, the Department of Energy filed their own cases with our secrets.”
“But the US is a first-to-file country,” Addy said. “If you win the race to the Patent Office, no one is allowed to come in and file after you, not even the government.”
“I understand, but what they’ve done is take our ideas, further embellish them, and then file on the improvements. They’re clearly trying to hem me in. They’ve apparently got an army of scientists monitoring everything I file. I told you, there are powerful investors who don’t want to see this technology come to market, at least not in the next decade. That’s why I needed you to help me. Sung-soo is trying to find out who is accessing our filings so we can develop a strategy for getting some of my cases through without being stolen.”
“What about the two from last week?”
“The ones with the secrecy order? They’ve been accessed by the same group. The DOE has seen what we filed.”
“And?”
“We haven’t seen anything filed by the DOE or any of their related entities, but we’re expecting something any day. We’ve got to get one of our cases through. Any ideas?”
“Like I said, we may want to file using a different computer.”
“That won’t work. Sung-soo rerouted your filings through a half a dozen computers all over the country before they hit the Patent Office servers. The Patent Office is using some other strategy to cull them. I’m sorry I haven’t called, but we’ve had some challenging production issues. I’m trying to get you a sample of the catalyst for the meeting with the examiner.”
Quinn always seemed to have a logical explanation. And his confident demeanor always calmed her.
“I’m afraid that’s my fault. I think I’m failing you. I thought my strategy would work. I’m sorry.”
“No need for an apology. We knew it
was going to be difficult. You filed a few dozen cases. Let’s sit tight and see what happens.”
“But there has to be something more we can do. More than just Sung-soo prowling around on his computer all night.”
She needed some way to force the Patent Office to let her cases through, but without knowing why they were being systematically denied, she didn’t know what to do.
An idea flashed into Addy’s mind. Several years ago, the Patent Office had created a secret program to put the kibosh on “sensitive” patent applications they didn’t want to see the light of day. These were patents covering ideas that, when poked fun of by the media, would embarrass the Patent Office.
It all started when Amazon received a patent on their one-click ordering scheme, and the press mistakenly reported that Amazon’s patent covered all online shopping. The Patent Office was accused of doing a poor job in filtering out ideas that weren’t patent worthy, especially by issuing a patent that reportedly could shut down all internet commerce. The reality was that internet merchants were unfazed by this patent, and simply chose to let their customers check out using more than one click. However, the Patent Office didn’t like the unwanted attention and created a secret program that allowed the Patent Office to monitor any technology that could be potentially embarrassing, and then give bogus rejections to make sure the patents were never granted.
Addy’s partner, Perry, had heard rumors of the program and filed a Freedom of Information Act request about it. He was right. There had been such a secret program. He gave the story to the press, the Patent Office was embarrassed, and class-action lawsuits from harmed inventors followed.
“I’m going to file a Freedom of Information request today,” Addy said. “They can’t do this. We’ll know soon enough if there is a systematic plan to protect US interests by copying foreign technology.”
“How long will it take?”
“I know an attorney in D.C. who can move it to the front of the line. We’ll know real soon.”
21
THE NEXT MORNING Addy had barely taken a first sip of her coffee when Janice bolted through the door waving a paper.
“We got an office action!”
An office action was patent lawyer lingo for the document summarizing the examiner’s review of a patent application. The fact that this paperwork had been issued by the Patent Office meant one of Addy’s cases had gotten through the minefield meant to submerge her attempts.
Addy snatched it out of her hand. “What’s it say?” She immediately began perusing the results of the examiner’s findings.
For some of the applications, Addy had filed a special request for an interview with the examiner before he formally acted on the case. This was a response to her request, and contained a summary of the scientific literature the examiner had discovered during his search. Before proceeding with his examination, the patent examiner wished to discuss his findings with Addy. By filing this request, Addy could be made privy to whether the examiner thought the application contained any merit and then informally negotiate a way to get the patent without all the normal back-and-forth paperwork.
Addy ran her finger down the list of documents the examiner had uncovered during his search. “I need copies of these pronto,” Addy said, handing Janice the last page of the report.
“Consider it done,” Janice said hustling out the door toward her office.
Addy picked up the phone. “I’m gonna call the Patent Office,” she said loud enough for Sung-soo to hear. “We may have some good news.”
The examiner gave Addy the impression that he was skeptical of her claims about extracting hydrogen from water. The good news was that the examiner was located in the San Jose office, meaning they didn’t need to travel all the way to Washington for a meeting.
Nearly every patent application is initially rejected, and the examiner’s dismissal was nothing new to Addy. His position that this idea was akin to a perpetual motion machine was disheartening—but not unexpected. She’d already told Quinn that a demonstration with his catalyst would be critical to ensuring the examiner’s stamp of approval.
“If you’re going to make claims like this, I’m going to have to see it for myself,” the examiner told her over the phone.
Addy was incredibly relieved that he spoke with an American accent. So many of the examiners struggled to speak English, making it difficult to explain any type of invention. As much as she cringed when Perry complained about the so-called diversity in the Patent Office, sometimes he had a legitimate point.
“The inventor is fully prepared to give you a demonstration,” she told the examiner. “I admit that although I am his attorney I, too, was somewhat dismissive. But after studying the science and seeing it for myself, I can honestly tell you that this is sound technology, and one that could change all of our lives. When should we set up a visit?” she concluded.
“Since you filed this as an expedited case, I need to act on it in two weeks. That means I’ll need to see your demonstration next week. Is that possible?”
“You’re in San Jose?”
“Yes, and it looks like your offices are in Palo Alto.”
“That’s correct, so we can drive down for the interview. Would next Tuesday at ten work?”
The line went silent as the examiner checked his calendar. “Let’s make it ten-thirty. I have a training meeting.”
Before she hung up, Sung-soo was hovering over her desk, his morning drink on his breath. He plunged his hand into his pocket, tugged out a phone and tapped the screen to call Quinn.
“Thanks,” Addy grunted as she snatched the phone.
“You’re killing me,” Quinn’s scratchy voice answered.
“It’s Addy, and I’ve got some news. You’ll want to hear this.” Sung-soo’s breath was more than she could bear and she turned to walk to the corner of her office. “We got one through to an examiner. He’s on a tight deadline and wants to meet next week. He’s got his doubts, and we need to dispel them.”
“Can you meet with him?”
“Yes, but I need the catalyst.”
She listened as Quinn cleared his throat. This was it. She was going to find out if this whole venture was a ruse.
“Did I mention we’re having some production issues? Jeyhu has his team working round the clock.”
“You did, but none of that matters. If you want your patent, you’ll be here Tuesday morning with the catalyst. We should leave the office by nine in case there is any traffic. I’ll see you then.”
Addy ended the call before Quinn could respond. She tossed Sung-soo the phone, who barely managed a two-handed grab, then plunged into her chair and kicked her feet onto her desk. “It’s show time. Let’s see how you boys perform.”
Sung-soo stormed out just as Janice bustled in with an armful of documents.
“Sorry for the light reading, but this is what Examiner Daniel Johnston found in his search.”
“What do we know about this Johnston fellow?”
“Next on my list,” Janice said. “I’m going to run a report right now.”
Because all of the patent filings were public documents, a host of analytics companies had scoured the Patent Office databases for statistics on every facet of an examiner’s career, from how long he took to allow cases to how many went on appeal.
“Thanks, Janice. That’s why you’re here,” Addy said, her head already buried in the first patent from the stack.
22
MOLLY PEELE WASN’T Long’s boss, but she was responsible for his current assignment. With the cybercrime division of the Justice Department, she oversaw federal criminal activity where computer networks were used for crimes. At the request of the Energy Department, she’d been investigating whether Quinn Moon had stolen important trade secrets relating to renewable energy sources.
Long found Peele’s door cracked open and peeked his head in. She was on the phone, speaking into a headset while she typed away. As soon as she noticed Long, she waved h
im inside and ended her call.
Long took a seat in front of her desk and sat down his cup of coffee.
“Sleeping these days?” she said.
“Last night was better. I think I can function today.”
“I’ll be quick,” she said, looking down to finish her email. “I need to get your log.”
Long pulled out his notepad and tossed it on the table. “Here it is.”
“Cute,” she said. “That’s why I didn’t bother asking you to email it. When are you going to get into the current century?”
“Old habits die hard,” he said. “When you grow up on a cattle ranch, there aren’t too many electronics.”
Peele slid the pad toward her. “That’s okay. I’ll have my admin put it into a spreadsheet.”
“What do you have so far?” Long asked.
“When Addy was with Wyckoff, her login ID to access the patent office website was used by several people at the same time. We’ve spoken with the Patent Office and they assured us that is normal. Most patent attorneys use paralegals to file their applications.”
“But I assume the attorney is still responsible for what happens when someone uses her ID.”
“Correct. When Addy joined WTG, the same thing happened, but it wasn’t to file applications.”
Long took a sip of his coffee. “Let me guess. We’ve got some Koreans snooping in the Patent Office records trying to steal even more technology.”
“That’s what we don’t know. Could be that, or it could be Addy. That’s where your log will help us. Most of the illegal activity is at odd hours. We want to match up when Addy is in the office with when her credentials are being used. If she’s in the office when we’ve detected illegal activity, it’s not going to bode well.”
23
JANICE HAD TO remind Addy that she was scheduled to meet the judge to discuss Hindy’s release from the impound lot. The hearing was scheduled for Monday morning, the day before her interview with Examiner Johnston.