Congress in Hot Seat to Fix Patent Law After High Court Denials

The U.S. Supreme Court’s latest refusal to revisit patent eligibility puts further pressure on Congress to write a set of clearer rules.

Attorneys say the high court sent a signal, by declining to hear several patent eligibility cases Monday, that any significant changes to the law will likely have to come from Capitol Hill. Discussions on a bill to rewrite Section 101 of the Patent Act, which sets the benchmark for patent eligibility, broke down last year amid disagreements among stakeholders.

The denials “will most certainly amp up pressure on Congress to act,” Jonathan Stroud, the chief intellectual property counsel ...