There are growing predictions from many authorities that Stevens might be the primary author of the Bilski patent case which has yet to be handed down.
Nobody ever got rich by successfully predicting what the Court will do, but overall, this seems to be very good news.
Stevens has been the one Justice who has consistently argued in favor of rational limitations on IP laws based on Constitutional principles.
He was the primary dissenter in the Eldred case which expanded copyright terms.
In his Eldred dissent, he specifically argued for limitations in the scope of both copyright AND patent law.
He was also a dissenter in the Diamond v. Diehr case - arguing that there should be further limits on software patents.
If Stevens is indeed the author of the Bilski opinion, that will likely be a good sign that the decision will offer something of good substance in terms of getting back on the road towards a sane patent regime.
