Five Years of the Patent Trial and Appeal Board

Five years down the line, it is clear that the biggest game-changer introduced by the America Invents Act, the first major overhaul of the U.S. patent statute in 60 years, has been the creation of the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB). The introduction of a series of new post-issuance review procedures—inter partes review, covered business method review, and post-grant review—has given defendants in patent lawsuits a powerful tool, while plaintiffs face a real threat to their patents’ validity. IAM interviewed Finnegan attorneys Jason E. Stach and Joshua L. Goldberg to analyze how these procedures are affecting the United States patent system.