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ARTICLE · 17 AUGUST 2020

What Does The Data Tell Us About The PTAB's New Motion To Amend Pilot Program?

Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner LLP
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The PTAB's Motion to Amend Pilot Program, offering a revamped and more robust opportunity for amendment to patent owners during America Invents Act ("AIA") trials, was launched well over a...

United StatesIntellectual Property
Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner, LLP
Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner, LLP
Jason Stach
Jason Stach
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The PTAB's Motion to Amend Pilot Program, offering a revamped and more robust opportunity for amendment to patent owners during America Invents Act ("AIA") trials, was launched well over a year ago in March of 2019.  On July 15, 2020, the PTAB released a sixth installment of their Motion to Amend Study (" 6th MTA Study"), which includes data relating to patent owners' use of the Motion to Amend ("MTA") Pilot Program.  What does the data tell us?  Have motions to amend become more popular?  Are they being granted more often?  As described below, the initial data appears to show that that there have been less motions to amend requested.

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Many questioned whether the MTA Pilot Program would result in more patent owners seeking amendments during an AIA trial.  As shown in slide 11 of the 6th MTA Study reproduced above, the number of total MTA requests actually decreased under the pilot, with 55 MTA requests in the last three reported quarters compared to 91 MTA

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