Patent Quality Initiative Responds to USPTO's Request for Comments on Enhancing Patent Quality

Provides recommendations to help ensure issuance of valid patents with improved clarity

New York, NY, May 07, 2015 – In support of its Patent Quality Initiative (PQI), Askeladden L.L.C. submitted a letter late last night to the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) in response to its request for comments on enhancing patent quality. PQI is an education, information, and advocacy effort dedicated to improving the understanding, use, and reliability of patents in financial services and other industries. In the letter, Askeladden provides a number of specific recommendations intended to improve patent quality. In particular, Askeladden's comments focus on enabling patent examiners to more efficiently identify the most relevant prior art and on improving clarity of claim scope.

"The financial services industry is often subjected to wasteful patent litigation on the basis of low-quality patents that should not have been issued," said Sean Reilly, General Counsel of Askeladden L.L.C. "These low-quality patents create barriers for innovators and inhibit advancements across technology sectors – including financial services – so we are pleased that the USPTO is spearheading this effort to improve patent quality."

Below are a few of the key recommendations detailed in Askeladden's letter.

• Provide a single primary search interface that searches an expanded library of prior art that includes non-patent literature (NPL) from major commercial databases and NPL submitted by applicants and third parties.
• Increase the credit and time allotted to examiners to review prior art following an unusually large or late-submitted information disclosure statement to ensure that examiners have adequate time to review each piece of cited prior art.
• Improve pre-examination search tools to ensure that they provide the most relevant prior art to examiners, not just more art.
• Require examiners to provide clear reasons for allowance in each issued case.

About the Patent Quality Initiative

The Patent Quality Initiative, under Askeladden L.L.C., is the product of thought-leadership provided by The Clearing House. The Patent Quality Initiative ("PQI") is an education, information and advocacy organization with the goal of improving the understanding, use and reliability of patents in financial services and other industries. PQI strives to promote better patents and patent holder behaviors by regularly filing amicus briefs, Inter Partes Reviews (IPRs) and engaging in educaitonal activities. Please visit www.patentqualityinitiative.com

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