Last week, a group of 59 tech companies wrote a letter to Commerce Secretary Gary Locke expressing serious concerns with the post-grant opposition procedures included in the patent reform bills currently pending in Congress.
The companies argue that the proposed post-grant review and inter partes reexamination procedures will have serious negative consequences at the Patent Office. They argue that the PTO is already stretched too thin. By adding post-grant review proceedings to the PTO’s docket, examination of applications will suffer and pendency will continue to rise.
The companies also expressed concern that the post-grant review proceedings could be abused by allowing infringers to subject valid patents to lengthy and repeated challenges. The letter includes several examples of firms that encourage such abusive practices.
The companies praised the compromise that was reached on the damages issue and requested that Secretary Locke work with Congress to improve the post-grant opposition and inter partes reexamination provisions of the bills.
