American Inventor Horror Story: Ten Years of AIA and the PTAB

​​Patently Strategic - Patent Strategy for Startups

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Listen in as we discuss the impact of the AIA and the PTAB with inventors gathered as part of the "Decade of Stolen Dreams" rallies, happening in front of regional USPTO offices all across the country, marking the 10 year anniversary of the passage of the America Invents Act – an event described by advocacy groups as the worst event in U.S. patent history.
The inventors and entrepreneurs at the rally we attended, all from diverse backgrounds with very different stories, have one thing in common and that is their shared belief that the AIA and the PTAB – with its eye-popping 84% invalidation rate – have crippled innovators and created a Decade of Stolen Dreams, ruining the lives of countless inventors and shutting down numerous start-ups, in favor of Big Tech and multinational corporations.
In this episode, we break down the AIA and PTAB through a wide array of personal perspectives from inventors, patent practitioners, and even a former USPTO patent examiner. We explore its origins, core problems, and proposed solutions. We also provide some very practical tips that inventors should consider now to help future-proof their patents, should they ever find themselves on the receiving end of an IPR.
Inventors are not only the real engine of our economy, but they’re also the reason we do what we do here at Aurora. This is a complex issue, with high stakes, involving the people who matter most to our business and what the world will look like for our kids, so we can’t think of a better use of a podcast episode than to lend a voice and hopefully shine a light on the key issues and some potential solutions.
I am joined today by an exceptional group of industry experts, founders, and inventors including:
* Ashley Sloat: President & Director of Patent Strategy at Aurora Consulting
* Dan Brown: Professor at Northwestern, owner of 40 utility patents, elected to the National Academy of Inventors, and serves as the inventor rep on the Patent Public Advisory Committee.
* Bob Schmidt: Founder, Chairman and CEO of 5 companies including Great Lakes NeuroTechnologies and Cleveland Medical Devices, Co-Chair of the Small Business Technology Council, and has 40 patents to his name
* Louis Carbonneau: Founder & CEO of Tangible IP, one of the largest patent brokers in the world
* Kip Azzoni Doyle: Inventor of the CardShark WalletSkin and the author of the upcoming book, “Blood in the Water, America’s Assault on Innovation”
* Tariq Najee-ullah: 10 year patent examiner, former NASA engineer, and current Principal at Patent Insider
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Learn more: https://www.aurorapatents.com/blog/new-podcast-american-inventor-horror-story
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And as always, thanks for listening!

Chapters

1. Intro (00:00:00)

2. AIA History and Overview (00:02:46)

3. AIA: First Inventor to File (00:03:31)

4. AIA: Prior art types for public use and sale (00:04:22)

5. AIA: Assignee Filing (00:04:55)

6. AIA: Regional Patent Offices (00:05:23)

7. AIA: Prioritized Examination (Track One) (00:05:33)

8. AIA: USPTO revenue control (00:05:46)

9. AIA: PTAB and IPRs (00:06:09)

10. Dan Brown intro (00:07:48)

11. Dan Brown on unintended consequences of AIA (00:08:08)

12. PTAB invalidation rate (00:08:46)

13. Top big tech infringers (00:09:03)

14. Bob Schmidt intro (00:09:21)

15. Bob Schmidt on why this is happening (00:09:30)

16. Dan Brown on how infringers are abusing the patent system (00:10:02)

17. Dan Brown on obviousness and bad patents (00:10:29)

18. How the PTAB is being used to invalidate the top tier patents (00:11:52)

19. The power of an IPR threat (00:12:32)

20. Kip Azzoni Doyle intro (00:13:03)

21. Kip's story (00:13:16)

22. Financial impact of being IPRd (00:14:36)

23. Josh Malone's infringement story and legal expenses (00:14:57)

24. PTAB composition and comparison with Article III courts (00:15:42)

25. Why the PTAB is seen as a more favorable venue (00:16:25)

26. Burden of proof (00:16:33)

27. Broader claim construction (00:16:56)

28. Standing not required (00:17:05)

29. PTAB judges (APJs): backgrounds and qualifications (00:17:15)

30. The cost of inaction (00:18:17)

31. Dan Brown on the best social system being a good job (00:18:45)

32. Kip on impact to patent value and licensing (00:19:16)

33. Bob Schmidt on patent devaluation (00:20:05)

34. Louis Carbonneau on impact to patent value (00:20:47)

35. Lost property rights and innovation's race to the bottom (00:22:10)

36. Bob Schmidt on Constitutional origin of patent rights (00:22:41)

37. Article 1, Section 8, Clause 8 (00:23:21)

38. IP Rights vs other property Rights (00:24:06)

39. Louis Carbonneau compares with getting a land title (00:24:44)

40. Exploring Solutions: Proposed legislative reforms (00:25:45)

41. Bob Schmidt on meaningful legislative reform (00:26:15)

42. Invalidation dissonance (00:30:40)

43. Exploring Solutions: PTO examiner process (00:31:36)

44. Inside the PTO perspective with Tariq Najee-ullah (00:31:53)

45. Patent examination from 30,000 ft (00:32:19)

46. Time spent on examination and prosecution (00:35:36)

47. Examiner focus on prior art searching (00:41:46)

48. How examiners look at patents vs. how judges look at patents (00:45:18)

49. Exploring Solutions: Louis Carbonneau on legal system share of responsibility (00:47:33)

50. Future proofing strategies for IPR success (00:49:47)

51. Call to action (00:52:32)

52. Outro (00:53:08)