Patent Reform Imminent

U.S. Congress has been discussing patent reform for a number of years now.  Various versions of bills have been tossed around and debated at length, and the patent issues generally have then been put on a shelf, taking back burner to other important issues requiring the attention of Congress.  It really had gotten to the “never cry wolf” stage for if/when anything was to come of the patent reform discussions and patent lawyers had grown weary with breath holding wondering if change was going to take place.  However, this week, both the House and the Senate have passed bills to make the proposed patent reforms into law.  The legislation has landed on President Obama’s desk.  It appears that he will sign the pending bill into law shortly.

Senate Passes Landmark Bill to Overhaul U.S. Patent System

On September 8, 2011, a late congress passed legislation dubbed “The America Invents Act” in an overwhelming 89-9 vote.  President Obama is expected to sign it into law within the next week.  In this CNNMoney report by David Goldman, the bill will mandate three things: