Current Legislation
February 2008
| February 27, 2008 | Read the Senate Judiciary Committee's Report on S. 1145. |
| February 15, 2008 | Coalition proposes language develop consensus patent reform legislation, see the attached one-pager for details on key provisions.(View PDF) |
| February 4, 2008 | US Dept. of Commerece letter to Patrick Leahy on the administration's opposition to section 4 of S. 1145 (View PDF) |
| February 4, 2008 | US Dept. of Commerece letter to Arlen Specter on the administration's opposition to section 4 of S. 1145 (View PDF) |
November 2007
| November 19, 2007 | Illinois manufacturers' Association writes letter to Barack Obama opposing S. 1145 (View PDF) |
September 2007
| September 20, 2007 | American Bar Association Writes Letter to Congress Opposing S. 1145 and H.R. 1908 (View PDF) |
| September 7, 2007 | Coalition to Continue to Work for Consensus Patent Legislation (View the Release) |
| September 5, 2007 | CWA Writes letter to House and Senate, expressing concern over the current state of H.R. 1908 and S. 1145 (View PDF) |
August 2007
| August 27, 2007 | IEEE writes letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi outlining concerns they have with H.R. 1908 (View PDF) |
| August 3, 2007 | 65 Members of Congress Write House Leadership Urging Caution on H.R. 1908 (View PDF) |
July 2007
| July 31, 2007 | United Steelworkers send letters of concern about patent reform act to both the US House (View PDF) and Senate (View PDF) |
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| July 25, 2007 | Letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid urging him to delay action on S. 1145 |
| July 25, 2007 | Letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi urging her to delay action on H.R. 1908 |
| July 24, 2007 | Legislative Alert from the AFL-CIO regarding HR 1908 |
| July 24, 2007 | Foreign Competitors Welcome the Proposed Change in the U.S. Patent Law - A Letter to all members of Congress from Representatives Michael Michaud and Donald Manzullo |
July 2, 2007 |
Letter from William Rooklidge to Senators Alen Spector and Jon Kyl on a variety of important issues related to the patent reform debate |
June 2007
| June 14, 2007 | |
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| June 7, 2007 | Letter from Chief Judge Michel to Shanna Winters, Chief Counsel to the Subcommittee on The Courts, Internet and Intellectual Property(pdf) Chief Judge Paul R. Michel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit sent a letter on June 7th to Shanna Winters, Chief Counsel for the Minority of the Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property. Within the letter to Ms. Winters, Judge Michel sited a recent article “Reform” of Patent Damages: S. 1145 and H.R. 1908. |
May 2007
| May 24, 2007 | Coalition Letter to Chairman Conyers and Ranking Member Smith (pdf) The Coalition provided the Judiciary Committee with its specific concerns with the Patent Reform Act of 2007. Attached to the letter is a correspondence from Yale University President Richard Levin to Senator Hatch. |
| May 21, 2007 | Letter from Chief Judge Michel to Chairman Conyers and Ranking Member Smith (pdf) Chief Judge Paul R. Michel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit sent a letter on May 21 to Chairman Conyers and Ranking Member Smith to "advise of the severe impact on both the Federal Circuit and the trial courts of the provisions on apportioning damages and interlocutory appeals." |
| May 17, 2007 | DOC General Counsel Letter to Berman on H.R. 1908 (pdf) The Department of Commerce, representing the views of the U. S. Patent and Trademark Office, has engaged in the debate on H.R. 1908 and patent reform. As the lead Executive Branch agency on domestic and international intellectual property issues, their voice is very important. |
| May 16, 2007 | Legislative Alert Mark-up of H.R. 1908, "The Patent Reform Act of 2007" |
| May 15, 2007 | Cross-Coalition Letter to House and Senate Leadership (pdf) Letter signed by a group of over 100 diverse companies, assocations, venture capital firms and academic institutions, regarding H.R. 1908 and S. 1145, the Patent Reform Act of 2007 |
| May 3, 2007 | Letter from Chief Judge Michel to Sens. Leahy and Hatch (pdf) |
April 2007
| Apr. 19, 2007 | Patent Reform Act of 2007 (pdf) Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy and House of Representatives Intellectual Property Judiciary Subcommittee chairman Howard Berman introduced the Patent Reform Act of 2007. The bill text is available for review. |
March 2007
Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee, and Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) are continuing their bipartisan work to craft a piece of patent reform legislation that — as Senator Leahy recently put it — "...threads the needle..." on the issue in terms of compromise. As authors of patent reform legislation in the 109th Congress, they are again attempting to broker a bill that has the support of the varied interests involved. Introduction is expected in the coming weeks. The U.S. Senate's two leaders on intellectual property issues hope to introduce comprehensive patent reform legislation that would address the need for revision and renewal in the complicated, cumbersome but vital U.S. patent process.
February 2007
Rep. Howard Berman (D-CA), chairman of the House Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property indicated he plans to make patent reform the, "strongest priority" of his panel and that legislation would be introduced in March. Rep. Berman also relayed there is little disagreement among parties or lawmakers on the need for patent reform.
Legislative Developments: Course Materials for Texas State Bar IP conference
| Mar. 1, 2007 | Course Material for the Texas State Bar's IP Conference (pdf) The author, William C. Rooklidge, is a partner with Howrey LLP in Irvine, CA. He is also the former President of the American Intellectual Property Law Association. |
Statements Made in the 109th Congress
© 2007 The Coalition for 21st Century Patent Reform