The America Invents Act: New Challenges and Opportunities for Patent Applicants and Litigants

In this article by Finnegan partners C. Gregory Gramenopoulos, Charles Van Horn, E. Robert Yoches, Esther H. Lim, Christopher S. Schultz, Linda J. Thayer, and Erika H. Arner, the authors provides an overview of the effective dates of the main provisions of the America Invents Act (AIA).  Then, the authors address each of these provisions, starting with the creation of a first-inventor-to-file system and following through with the new tools for challenging patents in the USPTO, including post-grant review (PGR) and inter partes review (IPR).  Finally, the authors conclude with a summary of other significant provisions of the AIA, such as those addressing best mode, false marking, and the joinder of parties in a patent infringement lawsuit.