Congress takes another stab at patent law reform
Feb. 8, 2015 3:32 PM ET|By: Eric Jhonsa, SA News Editor
Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) has introduced a new version of the Innovation Act, a bill aiming to make it tougher for IP licensing firms (often referred to by critics as patent trolls) to pursue infringement suits. The original Innovation Act was shelved 9 months ago by Sen. Pat Leahy (D-VT), reportedly at the behest of then-Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV). With the Republicans now controlling the Senate, the new version might have better odds.
Among other things, the bill: 1) Requires plaintiffs to disclose a patent's owner prior to litigation, and explain why they're suing a company in proceedings. 2) Requires courts to make a decision on a patent's validity early in the litigation process. 3) Requires judges to award attorney's fees to defendants for frivolous claims. 4) Requires the Judicial Conference to create rules lowering the costs of the discovery process during litigation, so that "patent trolls cannot use the high costs of discovery to extort money." 5) Creates "a voluntary process for small businesses to postpone expensive patent lawsuits."
Not surprisingly, Goodlatte's bill has been praised by an IT/telecom trade group - "We finally have a bill that would create a bit of gridlock for patent trolls’ extortion schemes." And it has been harshly criticized by a trade group representing IP licensors. "[T]he bill being introduced is over broad and does not take into account the many developments that have taken place over the past year in the patent landscape..."
As it is, the last two years have seen the White House issue executive actions and legislative proposals aimed at curtailing patent law abuses, the Supreme Court set limits on software patents (while upholding software's patentability), and lower federal courts issue a string of adverse rulings against various firms pursuing infringement claims.
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