Patent Concerns

Dissatisfaction with the current U.S. patent system is being expressed by various groups. Several patent lawyers and inventors from California have filed a complaint in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia contending that Margaret J.A. Peterlin, the recently appointed Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Deputy Director of the USPTO, does not have the qualifications to move the USPTO forward.

Congress is also concerned about patent issues. On Feb. 15, 2007 the Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet and Intellectual Property held an oversight hearing entitled American Innovation at Risk: The Case for Patent Reform. Suzanne Michel, Chief Intellectual Property Counsel and the Deputy Assistant Director for Policy Coordination, FTC testified as did public witnesses from Brandeis University, the National Academy of Sciences, and the Public Patent Foundation. Additionally, Congressman Howard L. Berman sponsored The Patent Reform Act of 2007 with thanks to Senator Leahy, Congressman Rick Boucher, and Congressman Lamar Smith. The act expresses concern about a "decrease in patent quality and an increase in litigation abuses."

On July 9 Business Week published "Look Who's Fighting Patent Reform" which reveals that universities, venture capitalists, and trade groups are concerned that "Big Tech" firms ( America's largest software and computer companies) are trying to rewrite patent law to lessen litigation from smaller entities.