Patent Office Policies Drive Interest in Old Litigation Playbook

Companies having trouble convincing a patent office tribunal to review a patent’s validity are dusting off an old playbook, and taking a renewed interest in reexaminations.

Requests for ex parte reexaminations at the patent office plummeted following the 2012 introduction of inter partes review, falling as much as 80%, according to U.S. Patent and Trademark Office data. Patent examiners in a reexam look at the validity of claims in an issued patent, and can reject claims that are unpatentable.

But the proceedings are showing signs of life, with the number of requests beginning to trend upward.

Kenneth Weatherwax, an ...