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IP News

By Jeffrey S. Ginsberg and Joseph Mercadante
March 29, 2011

Patent Reform Bill Passes Senate

The America Invents Act, S. 23, passed the Senate on a 95-5 vote, sending it to the House for consideration. The bill represents the first major change in U.S. patent law since the 1950s, and enjoys broad bipartisan support from legislators as well as the White House and USPTO Director David Kappos. Major features of the Senate bill include transitioning from a first-to-invent to first-to-file system; allowing the USPTO to set its own fees and keep the fees it generates; and changing the post-grant review process. The two fee-related measures, allowing the USPTO to set its own fees and keep any excess fees it generates, are designed to reduce the enormous current backlog of unexamined patent applications.

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