As an update to an earlier posting on the FTC hearings on the IP marketplace, the newsletter Intellectual Property Watch has published a summary of Friday's hearing. The big news seems to have been a statement by Chief Judge Paul R Michel, of the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals telling Congress and the Administration to stay away from patent reform:
“We will probably make more progress in the courts through case law” than by asking the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) or Congress to wade deep into intellectual property conflicts.
“Everyone should make their own choice about who is the right actor to make fine balancing decisions,” continued Michel, adding that “this is what courts do all the time, probably way better than Congress.”
That is pretty heady stuff. Something tells me that Congress and the Administration may have other ideas. The seems especially true give how many times recently the Supreme Court has ruled against the Federal Circuit.
One attendee told me that the most insightful comment of the entire workshop was when someone noted that the recent Supreme Court and Federal Circuit rules changing the rules have not yet really had an impact. In other words, the real change has yet to felt. Given this, I wonder if we will see a pause in reform efforts to digest what has already happened.
For those interested in the entire workshop, copies of some of the presentations -- and a link to the webcast -- are available at the workshop website: 2008 FTC Workshop: The Evolving Intellectual Property Marketplace.
Leave a comment