Bilski v. Kappos, Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director, Patent and Trademark Office

Summary

The Court held that the machine-or-transformation test is not the sole test for determining patent eligibility under 35 U.S.C. §101, and that §101 does not categorically exclude business methods. Petitioners' claims on hedging risk were rejected as unpatentable abstract ideas under precedents like Benson, Flook, and Diehr. Justice Stevens concurred in the judgment, arguing business methods are not processes under §101 based on history, while Justice Breyer concurred to highlight agreed-upon principles.