Reforming IPR

The similarity between hedge funds using postgrant review procedures to influence stock prices and the activities of patent trolls seeking to profit from IP they don't intend to put into practice has caught the attention of influential senators. Drug developers hope to leverage that attention to persuade Congress and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to make major changes to inter partes review.

Efforts by tech companies to tame trolls have been the motivating force behind patent reform legislation for the past decade, and a persistent source of conflict with life sciences companies that view strong, predictable patents as essential to their survival. ...