House Passes Controversial Innovation Act

Both the legislature and the judiciary are currently engaged in attempts to curb so-called "patent trolling" – the use of patents solely for litigation instead of innovation, development, and protection of marketed products. Rising concerns over this behavior led to the recent passage of H.R. 3309 (the "Innovation Act") with overwhelming bipartisan support, only about a month after the bill was introduced to the House. The Innovation Act aims to encourage innovation by creating a number of alleged procedural safeguards against frivolous patent infringement claims, including heightening pleading requirements, limiting discovery, and shifting fees to the prevailing party. It also contains provisions for making post-grant review procedures before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board a more attractive alternative to challenging patents in court. The Innovation Act has generated its own set of concerns, however, particularly among small corporate or individual patent owners,