So You Want to Invalidate a Patent? The PTAB May Be Your Friend!

Photo by EKATERINA BOLOVTSOVA on Pexels.comBy: Mark Stepanyuk Challenging the validity of a patent versus patent infringement If you have a patent and you think somebody is infringing on that patent, you may be able to sue them for patent infringement. Alternatively, if you think somebody has an inadequate patent, you can prospectively challenge its validity. Although historically these two causes of action have largely overlapped, they are very much distinct. This blog post is about the rise of a relatively new mechanism for challenging patent validity in the United States. What is the PTAB? The Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) was formed in 2012 as part of the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (probably most known for changing the U.S. Patent system from “first-to-invent” to “first-to-file.”) The PTAB replaced the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). In general, PTAB handles appeals…

So You Want to Invalidate a Patent? The PTAB May Be Your Friend!