Post-Grant Proceedings
Patent Office Trials:
Inter Partes Reviews, Post Grant Reviews, and Covered Business Method Patent Reviews
The America Invents Act (AIA) has changed the way that patents are enforced. In traditional patent litigation, a patent was drafted to perform in district court. After the AIA, when patents are asserted, they are first challenged in administrative proceedings before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB). These proceedings, called IPRs (inter partes reviews), PGRs (post-grant reviews), and CBMs (covered business method reviews), are conducted by skilled administrative law judges who have both scientific and legal experience. Patents that fail in these more-stringent reviews will never get a day in court, so patent applicants should be adapting their patent strategies to make their patents AIA-ready. Check out our video for tips on how to make stronger patents that will withstand AIA reviews.
Whether you’re holding a patent or having one asserted against you, reexamination is an option. Frequently, reexamination is performed when the AIA Patent Office trial option has been exhausted.
Reexamination is a more technical proceeding than a trial. Currently, the only reexamination proceedings that can be initiated are ex parte, which is between the requester and the Patent Office.
Our patent attorneys have extensive technical and legal training. They have handled numerous post-grant proceedings, such as AIA Patent Office trials and reexaminations, and they have litigated patent cases and appeals. Some have also worked in industry as chief in-house patent counsel at Fortune 500 companies. One served as the first Administrative Patent Judge for the Silicon Valley Patent and Trademark Office’s Patent Trial and Appeal Board.
Our team includes Tim Bianchi, Stephen Durant, Drew Hirshfeld, Michael Lynch, and Russ Slifer. Their wealth of experience can give you an edge whether you are asserting or defending a post-grant challenge.