Senate committee to redraft 'patent troll' legislation

The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee is going back to the drawing board on legislation to combat patent trolls following outcry by stakeholders including the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America and Biotechnology Industry Organization on an earlier bill. Committee Chair Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) pulled from the committee's agenda a Senate bill that was aiming to combat patent trolls. The committee was originally scheduled to mark up the bill -- the Patent Transparency and Improvements Act (S.1720) -- on Thursday. The abandoned bill included a provision that would have required plaintiffs who file a patent case to disclose their beneficial owners (see BioCentury Extra, April 4)

A spokesperson for Leahy said the committee is now working to write a bill that will have broader support from stakeholders, but declined to provide a time frame on a potential draft. ...