Patent Law Weblog
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- Apple v. Squires: USPTO Director Has Unlimited Discretion on IPR Institution
- The Ghost in the Machine: Why GenAI Can Be Both a Brilliant Researcher and a Terrible Advocate
- Bayer Files Suit Against Trio of COVID-19 Vaccine Makers
- Allen v. Cooper (4th Cir. 2026)
- To Require an Inventor ID, or Not to Require an Inventor ID – That Is the Question
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Category: Patent Legislation
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By Donald Zuhn — Secretary of Commerce Writes in Support of S. 515 On April 20, Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke (at right) wrote to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Ranking Member Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL), indicating that the Obama Administration strongly supported their efforts to reform U.S. patent law and…
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Last week, Patent Docs published a post on the recent White Paper issued from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office regarding provisions contained in the "Managers' Amendment" of the Senate patent reform bill (S. 515) (see "USPTO White Paper Supports Patent Reform Proposals"). The first author of that Paper, Ms. Arti Rai (at right), Administrator…
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By Kevin E. Noonan — On April 13th, the Department of Commerce released a White Paper entitled "Patent Reform: Unleashing Innovation, Promoting Economic Growth & Producing High-Paying Jobs." All admirable goals, but unfortunately the paper is more hortatory than informatory. Disappointingly, department economists, including Mark Doms, the chief department economist, and Stuart Graham, Chief…
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Congressman Becerra Once Again Tries to Ban Gene Patenting by Statute By Kevin E. Noonan — When last we encountered Congressman Xavier Becerra (D-CA), he was rumored to be headed for a post as U.S. Trade Representative (see "Proponent of Gene Patent Ban to Leave Congress"). That seems to have fallen through, because the…
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By Donald Zuhn — On Thursday, Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) introduced a bill in the House (H.R. 4954) that would amend 35 U.S.C. § 292(b) to permit "[a] person who has suffered a competitive injury as a result of a violation of this section may file a civil action in a district court of…
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By Donald Zuhn — On Tuesday, Senator Mary Landrieu (D-LA) introduced legislation (S. 3089) that would require the Office of Advocacy of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to conduct a study and report on the effects of changes to U.S. patent law that would result from enactment of the Patent Reform Act of 2009. …
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By Donald Zuhn — On February 25th, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) announced that the Committee had reached a "tentative agreement in principle" regarding patent reform legislation (see "Chairman Leahy Announces 'Tentative Agreement in Principle' on Patent Reform Bill"). Chairman Leahy noted that the Committee would release details regarding the bill "in…
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Manager's Amendment of S. 515 Would Eliminate Most Suits By Kevin E. Noonan — Over the past few weeks, close to perhaps one hundred actions, characterized as "qui tam" (or whistleblower) lawsuits have been filed against several large companies (including 3M, Monster Cable Products, S.C. Johnson & Co., Proctor & Gamble Co., and Novartis…
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By Donald Zuhn — Last Thursday, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) informed those watching the Committee's Executive Business Meeting that the Committee had reached a "tentative agreement in principle" regarding patent reform legislation (see "Chairman Leahy Announces "Tentative Agreement in Principle" on Patent Reform Bill"). Chairman Leahy noted that the Committee would…
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By Donald Zuhn — During an Executive Business Meeting of the Senate Judiciary Committee held earlier today, Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) informed attendees and online viewers that the Committee had reached a "tentative agreement in principle" regarding patent reform legislation. Chairman Leahy (at right) noted that the agreement preserves the "core of the compromise"…
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