A Prescription for Biopharmaceutical Patents: A Cure for Inter Partes Review Ailments

The patent system in the United States was forever changed with the introduction of the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (AIA) in September of 2011. The AIA brought sweeping changes to American patent law in order to align the U.S. with much of the rest of the world by changing the invention priority from a “first to invent” to a “first to file” system. The first section of this note will provide a brief overview of the substance of inter partes reviews and some of the most critical negatives that have become apparent since 2013. The second section of this Note will highlight the imperfections and abuses that have become apparent with the inter partes review process, especially in how the biotechnology and biopharmaceutical industries have been negatively impacted or threatened. This Note will then conclude with proposed amendments to the inter partes review procedure, combining elements of covered business method reviews and oppositions that could be used to ease the burden on the biotech industry, to provide a better system for ensuring that developers of drugs can spend more time in the laboratory and less time in the court room

A Prescription for Biopharmaceutical Patents: A Cure for Inter Partes Review Ailments

The patent system in the United States was forever changed with the introduction of the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (AIA) in September of 2011. The AIA brought sweeping changes to American patent law in order to align the U.S. with much of the rest of the world by changing the invention priority from a “first to invent” to a “first to file” system. The first section of this note will provide a brief overview of the substance of inter partes reviews and some of the most critical negatives that have become apparent since 2013. The second section of this Note will highlight the imperfections and abuses that have become apparent with the inter partes review process, especially in how the biotechnology and biopharmaceutical industries have been negatively impacted or threatened. This Note will then conclude with proposed amendments to the inter partes review procedure, combining elements of covered business method reviews and oppositions that could be used to ease the burden on the biotech industry, to provide a better system for ensuring that developers of drugs can spend more time in the laboratory and less time in the court room