Patent Law Practice Center

Patent Reform Update: Summer Debate Ahead For America Invents Act

Although we haven’t heard much about Patent Reform in the last few weeks, Scott McKeown, Partner at Oblon Spivak and Practice Center Contributor, discusses below why he believes we will still see some form of patent reform in 2011.

Overhaul to U.S Patent System Awaits Further Debate

There has been true progress toward enacting patent reform in 2011. First, in March,S.23 was shepherded through the Senate in a matter of weeks by Senator Leahy. Next the House took up H.R. 1249. The House companion bill includes much of the same, if not identical provisions to S.23. A few weeks back H.R. 1249 was refined by Manager Amendment and voted out of committee for floor debate.

With the House now back in session, H.R. 1249 will now await its turn in the legislative queue. An early summer debate (mid-late June) seems likely based upon the current House calendar. During this debate, key provisions of the bill will likely be attacked anew, further amendments have been promised.

Prospects for bill passage, at least in some form, still seem very high. With the current PTO budget crunch, fee diversion will likely be a significant rallying cry for suporters.

Stay Tuned.