PTAB Strategies and Insights – March 2019

The PTAB Strategies and Insights newsletter provides timely updates and insights into how best to handle proceedings at the USPTO. It is designed to increase return on investment for all stakeholders looking at the entire patent life cycle in a global portfolio.

This month, we cover three topics:

• First, we direct your attention to the first decision out of the PTAB’s newly formed Precedential Opinion Panel (POP), addressing the question of whether petitioners can join their own petitions. You will find Pauline Pelletier’s analysis of the decision here.
• Second, the USPTO launched a pilot program on March 15th that implements significant changes to motion to amend practice in PTAB trials. You will find Graham Phero’s and Mike Specht’s discussion of that program here.
• In addition, in case you missed it last month, we direct your attention to the publication of our annual review of the top cases to reach the Federal Circuit from the PTAB. This is the third annual report on appeals from the PTAB to the Federal Circuit. A PDF of the full report can be downloaded from the Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox website here.

We will return to decisions coming from the POP and we will tie together guidance regarding motions to amend practice in the coming months.

We welcome feedback and suggestions about this newsletter to ensure we are meeting the needs and expectations of our readers. So if you have topics you wish to see explored within an issue of the newsletter, please reach out to me.

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