Inventors’ group denied anti-PTAB protest
A permit to protest against the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) has been refused by the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
US Inventor, an organisation dedicated to improving the patent system, had applied for the permit to conduct a protest today, August 11.
Its concerns include “many inventors” being denied patents and others being caught in “never-ending multi-million dollar legal battles against giant corporate infringers”.
Yesterday, the organisation sent a letter to Frederick Steckler, chief administrative officer of the USPTO, appealing against the decision to reject the permit.
“Based on the information currently available, it appears the USPTO is denying a use permit application based on the perceived content and viewpoints of US Inventor’s proposed activities,” said the letter, available here (courtesy of IPWatchdog).
This approach, according to US Inventor, is not permissible under the First Amendment.
The protest had been organised to coincide with the USPTO’s Invention-Con 2017 event, scheduled for August 11 and 12.
In the letter, the organisation explained that the protest would be peaceful.
US Inventor submitted its application on July 24 and resubmitted the application four days later.
In early August, the organisation received the initial non-approval notice, which didn’t provide any basis for denying the application, said US Inventor.
Then, on Tuesday, August 9, US Inventor spoke with Charles Fanshaw, director of the office of administrative service at the USPTO.
Following the conversation, Fanshaw provided an e-mail setting out the official non-approval decision and providing three reasons for this.
First, it was claimed that the location, time, and description of activities listed will “disrupt the official business of the USPTO”.
US Inventor countered that the decision doesn’t explain how the activities would cause disruption.
The second and third reasons were that booth/table set-up applications are limited to instances where it “furthers an agency objective or programme” and that any use of the USPTO is “limited to cultural, educational, and recreational activities”.
In response US Inventor said: “The lack of guidance and the inconsistent information from the USPTO has hindered US Inventor’s ability to address USPTO’s concerns—whatever they may be— about the planned events. Moreover, the lack of guidance is inconsistent with the agency’s obligations under the applicable federal rules.”
In a separate white paper, US Inventor outlined what it believes are the critical issues weakening the US patent system.
“The America Invents Act (AIA) of 2011 and the establishment of the PTAB have made it more difficult for individual inventors to challenge large corporations on patent infringement,” said the organisation.
Congress must take immediate action to reverse the decline in the patent system, said US Inventor, stating that the AIA should be repealed or amended.
A USPTO spokesperson said the office welcomed "the perspectives of small inventors—they are an important part of the patent system and their views need to be heard".
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