House oversight hearing on draft patent reform bill: What did we learn?

Yesterday, the oversight hearing of the House Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property formally kicked-off the patent reform efforts of the 109th Congress.

What did the hearing show us?  Quite a bit, actually.

First, the hearing provided a sense of the willingness of this Congress to tackle the patent reform issue.  Several committee members expressed their belief that patent reform is important, with Representative Boucher characterizing it as one of the most important issues before this Congress.

Second, its clear that the committee was interested in gauging support for the reform issue generally, as well as for specific reform measures.  The witnesses were carefully selected to represent a cross section of users of the patent system (witnesses represented the biotech and software industries, lawyers, and patent owners generally) and committee members used the opportunity presented by the cross-section to get a picture of the support base.  At one point, Chairman Lamar Smith ran through a checklist of the sections in the draft reform bill, ticking off those that “everyone supports.” 

Third, and perhaps most important, the hearing showed that the reform effort has broad-based support amongst users of the patent system.  Speaking of reform in a general sense, each of the witnesses indicated that the groups they represented support the effort.  The most valuable lesson from the hearing, though, was a revelation of the reform measures that enjoy broad support and those that will require some compromise.

Interestingly, two of the “big ticket items” (switching to a first inventor to file system and establishment of an administrative post-grant review system) clearly enjoy broad support (differences exist on the details, but all of the witnesses expressed support for the concepts behind these measures).  It also became clear that the proposed changes to the injunction provisions will produce significant debate and will likely require compromise.

Fourth, the hearing reaffirmed the importance of patent office funding and the fee diversion issue.  Several statements were made by the witnesses that reveal a belief that resolution of the funding issue is critical to the success of any reform efforts.

The effort is now formally underway.  Stay tuned as it shifts into high gear over the next several months.