Innovation Alliance Statement on Senate Judiciary IP Subcommittee Hearing on Patent Eligibility Restoration Act
Bipartisan Bill Would Help Restore Certainty and Predictability to Subject Matter Eligibility; Reforms Needed to Ensure U.S. Can Compete With China on AI and Other Key Technologies
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Innovation Alliance Executive Director Brian Pomper issued the following statement on the U.S. Senate Judiciary IP Subcommittee’s hearing on the bipartisan, bicameral Patent Eligibility Restoration Act (PERA) (S.1546/H.R.3152):
“The Innovation Alliance thanks the Senate Judiciary IP Subcommittee for holding another hearing on the bipartisan, bicameral Patent Eligibility Restoration Act (PERA). This legislation makes critical reforms to patent eligibility law that will help restore certainty and predictability to the U.S. patent system.
“Historically, inventions in the United States were patented across broad categories of discovery. Starting in 2010, however, the Supreme Court issued a series of decisions that have upended longstanding settled law and narrowed the scope of patent-eligible subject matter. These decisions have created chaos in the patent world and left inventors and lower court judges uncertain about what is patentable. Meanwhile, our foreign competitors, including China, are granting patents on many inventions that are now unpatentable here.
“This not only undermines U.S. competitiveness and the ability of our nation to remain the global leader in innovation, but it harms U.S. national security as other countries challenge U.S. leadership in developing key technologies. USPTO Director John Squires emphasized this point in his confirmation hearing, stating: ‘The Chinese national patent system has a more expansive subject-matter area than the United States does. And that it troubling to me — it should be troubling to all Americans.’
“PERA would clarify categories of inventions that are eligible to receive patents, restoring needed certainty and predictability for American innovators and investors, and ensuring the United States avoids ceding leadership in key technologies to our foreign adversaries and competitors. We urge Congress to take up and pass this important legislation as soon as possible.”
PERA was reintroduced last spring in the Senate by IP Subcommittee Chair Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Senator Chris Coons (D-DE), and in the House by Representatives Kevin Kiley (R-CA) and Scott Peters (D-CA). The legislation was drafted following years of study and deliberation with key stakeholders. For more information on PERA, click here.
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ABOUT THE INNOVATION ALLIANCE
The Innovation Alliance represents innovators, patent owners and stakeholders from a diverse range of industries that believe in the critical importance of maintaining a strong patent system that supports innovative enterprises of all sizes. Innovation Alliance members can be found in large and small communities across the country, helping to fuel the innovation pipeline and drive the 21st century economy. Learn more at www.innovationalliance.net.