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Ifw Hidden Attribution Memo

IFW Hidden Attribution Memo — "Front Page Gap" Patents

Date: March 24, 2026 Re: Patents where eGrant front page omits Litman but IFW metadata proves CN-37833 / NGM submission Status: CONFIRMED — IFW JSON fetched, PDFs downloaded and verified


Executive Summary

Two King Saud University patents — US 12,227,748 B1 (Feb 18, 2025) and US 12,303,254 B1 (May 20, 2025) — were flagged because their eGrant front pages do not list Richard C. Litman as attorney. However, the complete IFW (Image File Wrapper) records prove that:

  1. Goldberg personally signed both POAs appointing CN-37833 (the Litman/NGM customer number)
  2. Every outgoing USPTO document in both files is addressed to "Richard C. Litman / Nath, Goldberg & Meyer / 112 S. West Street, Alexandria, VA 22314"
  3. The PTOL-85B (Issue Fee Transmittal) for both patents lists "Nath, Goldberg & Meyer" and "Joshua B. Goldberg" as the attorneys to be printed on the patent front page
  4. Fees were paid from NGM Deposit Account 14-0112

These patents demonstrate that Litman's name was used even more extensively than the issued patent front pages reveal — the full prosecution file is saturated with his identity.


Patent Details

US 12,227,748 B1 — "Aptamers for Binding to a Membrane-Based Lipid"

Field Value
Patent Number 12,227,748
Application 18/646,631
Filed April 25, 2024
Issued February 18, 2025
Assignee King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Inventor Md. Ashrafuzzaman
Attorney Docket 33056.75U
Confirmation 7201

IFW Document Chain (28 outgoing + incoming documents):

Document Date Direction Key Content
POA (PTO/AIA/82A) 2024-04-25 INCOMING Signed /Joshua B. Goldberg/ Reg. 44126
POA (PTO/AIA/82B) 2024-04-14 (KSU signed) INCOMING Customer Number 37833; Applicant: KING SAUD UNIVERSITY; Signed by Dr. Thamer Ali Albahkali
Filing Receipt 2024-05-07 OUTGOING "37833 / Richard C. Litman / Nath, Goldberg & Meyer / 112 S. West Street, Alexandria, VA 22314"
Track One Grant 2024-06-05 OUTGOING Addressed to Litman/NGM at CN-37833
Restriction Requirement 2024-07-01 OUTGOING Addressed to Litman/NGM
Non-Final Rejection 2024-09-06 OUTGOING Addressed to Litman/NGM
NOA (PTOL-85) 2025-01-03 OUTGOING "37833 / 7590 / 01/03/2025 / Richard C. Litman / Nath, Goldberg & Meyer / 112 S. West Street, Alexandria, VA 22314"
IFEE (PTOL-85B) 2025-01-07 INCOMING Section 2 attorney names: "1. Nath, Goldberg & Meyer / 2. Joshua B. Goldberg"; Signed /James Lafave/ Reg. 71013; Deposit Account 14-0112
Issue Notification 2025-01-29 OUTGOING Addressed to Litman/NGM
eGrant 2025-02-18 OUTGOING Patent issued

Total outgoing documents addressed to "Richard C. Litman": 16


US 12,303,254 B1 — "Body Appendage Position Prediction Using ECG Data"

Field Value
Patent Number 12,303,254
Application 19/028,392
Filed January 17, 2025
Issued May 20, 2025
Assignee King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Inventors Rasha Mohammad Aieidan; Arwa Mohammed Alanazi; Ghala Ibrahim Alsougheir
Attorney Docket 33115.39U
Confirmation 7301

IFW Document Chain (21 outgoing + incoming documents):

Document Date Direction Key Content
POA (PTO/AIA/82A) 2025-01-17 INCOMING Signed /Joshua B. Goldberg/ Reg. 44126
POA (PTO/AIA/82B) 2025-01-08 (KSU signed) INCOMING Customer Number 37833; Applicant: KING SAUD UNIVERSITY; Signed by Dr. Thamer Ali Albahkali
Filing Receipt 2025-02-11 OUTGOING "37833 / Richard C. Litman / Nath, Goldberg & Meyer / 112 S. West Street, Alexandria, VA 22314"
Track One Grant 2025-03-03 OUTGOING Addressed to Litman/NGM
NOA (PTOL-85) 2025-04-09 OUTGOING "37833 / 7590 / 04/09/2025 / Richard C. Litman / Nath, Goldberg & Meyer"
IFEE (PTOL-85B) 2025-04-16 INCOMING Section 2 attorney names: "1. Nath, Goldberg & Meyer / 2. Joshua B. Goldberg"; Signed /James Lafave/ Reg. 71013; Deposit Account 14-0112
Issue Notification 2025-05-07 OUTGOING Addressed to Litman/NGM
eGrant 2025-05-20 OUTGOING Patent issued
Certificate of Correction 2025-06-10 INCOMING Post-issuance activity still under CN-37833

Total outgoing documents addressed to "Richard C. Litman": 12


Why This Matters for the Case

1. The "Hidden Attribution" Problem

The eGrant front page for these patents may not list "Richard C. Litman" on Line 74 — the examiner-search-visible attorney field. But the entire prosecution file is conducted under his name. Every Filing Receipt, every Office Action, every Notice of Allowance is addressed to him. The PTOL-85B explicitly requests "Nath, Goldberg & Meyer" and "Joshua B. Goldberg" be printed on the front page — but the correspondence address remains Litman throughout.

This means: Even patents that appear to have "moved on" from Litman are still using his identity as the registered correspondence attorney for the entire prosecution.

2. Goldberg's Direct Causal Role (POA Signatures)

Both POAs are signed by Joshua B. Goldberg (Reg. 44126): - 12,227,748: POA signed April 25, 2024 (post-arbitration, post-SOL-safe) - 12,303,254: POA signed January 17, 2025 (post-arbitration, post-SOL-safe, well after the June 2025 "especially problematic" period begins)

These are Goldberg POA #15 and #16 in the running count. They extend the documented pattern of Goldberg personally initiating the appointment of CN-37833 — which maps to "Richard C. Litman / Nath, Goldberg & Meyer" — as attorney of record.

3. New Actor: James Lafave (Reg. 71013)

Lafave signs both PTOL-85B fee transmittals. He acts under the CN-37833 umbrella that Goldberg established. His involvement shows the name-use is institutional and directed — not accidental. Lafave's signature on the fee transmittals: - 12,227,748: Signed 2025-01-07, directing fees to Deposit Account 14-0112 - 12,303,254: Signed 2025-04-16, directing fees to Deposit Account 14-0112

4. Recency of Name-Use

US 12,303,254 is filed January 17, 2025 and the PTOL-85B is signed April 16, 2025. The NOA is mailed April 9, 2025. This is ongoing name-use deep into 2025 — months after the lawsuit was filed. The Certificate of Correction filing on June 10, 2025 shows continued activity under CN-37833 even after the late-period cutoff.

5. "Deck of Cards" Multiplier

Under the established theory that each outgoing USPTO document is a separate § 51 publication: - 12,227,748: 16 separate publications bearing Litman's name - 12,303,254: 12 separate publications bearing Litman's name - Combined: 28 additional "cards in the deck"

6. Discovery Implications

These two patents prove that the IFW record contains evidence not visible from the patent front page alone. This supports a demand for: - Full IFW JSON metadata for ALL 905+ patents (or at minimum any KSU/KFU patents where Line 74 doesn't show Litman) - PTOL-85B images showing who directed the attorney-name printing - Submitter ID / email data from Patent Center electronic filing records - Deposit Account 14-0112 transaction records showing NGM's continued financial control


Evidence Files (Downloaded and Verified)

All files saved to evidence/ifw_gap_patents/:

File Description
12227748_PA__.pdf POA — Goldberg signature (Reg. 44126), CN-37833, KSU applicant
12227748_IFEE.pdf PTOL-85B — "Nath, Goldberg & Meyer" + "Joshua B. Goldberg" attorney listing; Lafave signature
12227748_NOA.pdf Notice of Allowance — addressed to "Richard C. Litman / Nath, Goldberg & Meyer"
12227748_APP_FILE_REC.pdf Filing Receipt — "37833 / Richard C. Litman / Nath, Goldberg & Meyer"
12227748_TRNA.pdf Transmittal of New Application
12303254_PA__.pdf POA — Goldberg signature (Reg. 44126), CN-37833, KSU applicant
12303254_IFEE.pdf PTOL-85B — "Nath, Goldberg & Meyer" + "Joshua B. Goldberg" attorney listing; Lafave signature
12303254_NOA.pdf Notice of Allowance — addressed to "Richard C. Litman / Nath, Goldberg & Meyer"
12303254_APP_FILE_REC.pdf Filing Receipt — "37833 / Richard C. Litman / Nath, Goldberg & Meyer"
12303254_TRNA.pdf Transmittal of New Application

IFW JSON files saved to uspto_richard_litman_package_full/uspto_richard_litman/uploads/: - NOA_12227748.json (60 documents) - NOA_12303254.json (41 documents)


Updated POA Signature Count

With these two additions, the confirmed Goldberg POA signatures now total 16:

# App Number Patent POA Date Client
1-14 (previously documented) Various 2023-03 through 2024-03 KFU, KSU, UAEU, others
15 18/646,631 12,227,748 2024-04-25 King Saud University
16 19/028,392 12,303,254 2025-01-17 King Saud University

Note: Patent 12,303,254 POA signed January 17, 2025 is now the most recent confirmed Goldberg POA signature — 7 months after the post-SOL-safe date (7/21/2024) and into 2025.


Implications for Broader Dataset

If two randomly-flagged "front page gap" patents both show this pattern, the probability is high that hundreds of the 905+ post-6/15/2020 patents have identical IFW records — CN-37833 correspondence, Goldberg POAs, NGM deposit account fees — even where the front page doesn't display Litman's name prominently.

Recommended discovery demand: Structured IFW metadata (JSON format) and PTOL-85B images for all patents prosecuted under Customer Number 37833 from June 15, 2020 to present.