Quinn Emanuel Partner Jim Glass and Associate Christopher Smith have recently published an article in Reuters titled 'How patent office director review has reshaped the rehearing landscape'
Quinn Emanuel Partner Jim Glass and Associate Christopher Smith have recently published an article in Reuters titled 'How patent office director review has reshaped the rehearing landscape'.
The article discusses the changes made to the process of requesting a review of Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) decisions. These changes have given practitioners new options and have led to significant changes in both the number of reviews requested and the decisions resulting from those requests. The United States Supreme Court decision in 2021 in the case of United States v. Arthrex regarding the decision-making authority of administrative patent judges has prompted the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to develop new processes for ensuring the availability of director review of administrative patent judges. In this article, the authors examine the rehearing landscape before and after the Arthrex case, to help guide practitioners seeking review to select the most suitable process for their practice.