PTO ‘Thriving,’ Has Addressed Many IG Concerns, Acting Head Tells Lawmakers
The Patent and Trademark Office is “thriving,” reducing patent application backlog, addressing information technology deficits and expanding patent examiner training, Acting PTO Director Michelle Lee said Wednesday at a House Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property and the Internet hearing. Lee acknowledged, backed by several lawmakers, that the House-passed, Senate-stalled Innovation Act (HR-3349) could further empower the agency to continue its work. Rep. Blake Farenthold, R-Texas, also pressed Lee about the agency’s response to a Department of Commerce Office of the Inspector General (OIG) report released Tuesday, revealing $5 million in wasted expenses.
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Lee outlined a PTO buoyed by the America Invents Act (AIA), a 2011 law stabilizing the agency’s funding, establishing quicker patent reviews and new methods to challenge vague patents, and expanding the agency’s nationwide footprint (http://1.usa.gov/1gATOpP). Despite a 5 percent year-over-year increase in filings, Lee said, PTO has reduced patent application backlog by 24 percent since 2009. It has also implemented all 37 of the AIA’s requirements, she said. Twenty eight were delivered on time, said Ranking Member Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y.
The law also created the current Patent Trial and Appeals Board (PTAB), which “established a timely and cost-effective post-grant review” of patents, Lee said. PTAB has issued a ruling on roughly 1,600 cases per year -- more than 200 percent above initial predictions -- within its prescribed timeline of one year, she said.
An OIG report released Tuesday questioned the efficacy of PTAB (http://1.usa.gov/1rQnOpG). It uncovered numerous paralegals “who had insufficient workloads and considerable idle time.” Despite spending this down time “watching television; surfing the Internet; using Facebook and other social media; washing laundry and cleaning dishes; and shopping online,” the employees continued to receive pay, the OIG report said. “Their findings demand immediate attention,” Farenthold said Wednesday. “What’s your view of the recommendations?"
"Much of what the OIG recommended in terms of management and organizational improvement is already underway, or already completed,” Lee responded. She said PTO was notified of the issue in February 2013, and immediately did its own investigation, as well as bringing in an outside party to conduct its investigation. The paralegal timekeeping issue has already been changed, Lee said. Within 60 days, the agency will have a full response with “details for intended next steps” in every area, she said.
Several lawmakers Wednesday were favorable toward Lee and her tenure as acting director. The PTO is without a true head, with Lee serving as acting head since January (http://1.usa.gov/1gpE0sr). The White House was reported to be ready to tap Philip Johnson, chief intellectual property counsel for Johnson & Johnson, as the agency’s next head, but an outcry among technology industry groups led to his withdrawal (CD July 11 p15). Subcommittee Chairman Howard Coble, R-N.C., told Lee, “We appreciate very much the exchange we've had with you during your tenure there.” Coble essentially endorsed Lee as the PTO’s permanent director, but joked, “My record for endorsement is dismal.”