United States House of Representatives, Committee on the Judiciary
 
     
     
     
     
     
   
 



 
   
  America Invents Act of 2011

Background on H.R. 1249, the America Invents Act: On September 16, President Obama signed into law the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (H.R. 1249), a bipartisan, bicameral bill that updates our patent system to encourage innovation, job creation and economic growth.  Both Houses of Congress overwhelmingly supported the proposal, which was sponsored by House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas).  The House of Representatives passed H.R. 1249 by a vote of 304-117 earlier this year. The Senate passed the bill by a vote of 89-9.  Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) partnered with Chairman Smith on the legislation.  Congressman Smith led the House efforts on patent reform for more than six years.

 
Much-needed reforms to our patent system are long overdue.  The last major patent re­form was nearly 60 years ago. Since then, U.S. innovators have developed cell phones and launched the Internet. And yet the laws protecting the technologies of today are stuck in the past.


Our outdated patent system has been a barrier to innovation, unnecessarily delaying American inventors from marketing new products and creating jobs for American workers. It takes over three years to get a patent approved in the U.S.  American innovators are forced to wait years before they can hire workers and market their inventions.  Meanwhile, our competitors are busy developing new products that expand their businesses and grow their economies. This year, for the first time, China is expected to become the world’s number one patent publisher, surpassing the U.S. and Japan in the total and basic number of patents. We cannot expect America’s innovators and job creators to keep pace with the global marketplace with the patent system of the past. We need a system that ensures patent certainty, approves good patents quickly and weeds out bad patents effectively.


The Leahy-Smith America Invents Act is one of the most significant job creation bills enacted by Congress this year.  The Act implements a first-inventor-to-file standard for patent approval, creates a post-grant review system to weed out bad patents, and helps the Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) address the backlog of patent applications. The enactment of H.R. 1249 is a victory for America’s innovators and job creators who rely on our patent system to develop new products and grow their businesses. The America Invents Act brings our patent system into the 21st century, reducing frivolous litigation while creating a more efficient process for the approval of patents.  These reforms will help the innovators and job creators of today launch the products and businesses of tomorrow.

Bill Information

Bill Text

Smith Manager's Amendment - Updated as of June 20

Statement of Administration Policy

H.R. 1249 One-Page Bill Summary

H.R. 1249 One-Page Bill Summary - Constitutionality

H.R. 1249 One-Page Bill Summary - Job Creation

Comparison of Key Provisions of S. 23 and H.R. 1249

Committee Report

Press Resources

President signs patent reform into law (with photo)

House Passes Smith's Patent Reform Bill

House Adopts Smith Manager’s Amendment

Floor Statement of Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith H.R. 1249, the "America Invents Act"

Committee Approves Patent Reform Proposal

Patent Reform Agreement Ends Fee Diversion, Preserves Oversight

Patent Reform Bill Heads to House Floor

H.R. 1249 Talking Points

Approve Legislation and Keep Section 18 (Roll Call) - June 22, 2011

Patent reform is long overdue (The Hill) - June 21, 2011

The importance of patent reform (Politico) - June 15, 2011

Achieving patent reform (Austin American-Statesman) - April 24, 2011

Pass patent reform to create jobs (Politico) - March 30, 2011

Meaningful patent reform a must (Politico) - February 11, 2011

Dear Colleague Letters

Rep. Grimm Dear Colleague Letter - June 22, 2011

New Democrat Coalition Dear Colleague Letter - June 21, 2011

Rep. Issa, Rep. Jordan and Rep. Chabot Dear Colleague Letter - June 21, 2011

Judiciary Committee Dear Colleague Letter - June 1, 2011

Judiciary Committee Dear Colleague Letter - May 23, 2011

Legal Analysis

McConnell Letter - June 16, 2011

Attorney General Mukasey Letter

Dinh:Constitutional Analysis Letter

Dinh:Constitutional Analysis Memo

Dinh:Constitutional Analysis Response

McConnell:Post-grant Review Proceedings and Business Method Patents Letter

Timothy Holbrook and Mark D. Janis Letter

Statements of Support

Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) Statement - June 21, 2011

IBM Statement - June 21, 2011

Coalition for 21st Century Patent Reform Statement - June 21, 2011

Coalition for 21st Century Patent Reform and Innovative Alliance Statement - June 13, 2011

California Healthcare Institute

Letters of Support

List of Supporters of H.R. 1249

DuPont - July 6, 2011

Integrated DNA Technologies - June 30, 2011

Red Hat, Inc. - June 30, 2011

Information Technology Industry Council - June 30, 2011

Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council - June 29, 2011

Procter & Gamble - June 29, 2011

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) - June 29, 2011

American Bankers Association, American Council of Life Insurers, American Financial Services Association, American Insurance Association, The Clearing House Association, Consumer Bankers Association, Credit Union National Association, The Financial Services Rountable, The Independent Community Bankers of America, Mortgage Bankers Association, National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies, Property Casualty Insurers Association of America, Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association - June 29, 2011

Business Software Alliance - June 29, 2011

Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council - June 29, 2011

Yale University - June 28, 2011

IBM - June 28, 2011

Corning Incorporated - June 28, 2011

Coalition for Patent Fairness - June 27, 2011

Association of American Universities, American Council on Education, Association of American Medical Colleges, Association og Public and Land-grant Universities, Association of University Technology Managers, COuncils on Governmental Relations - June 27, 2011

Independent Inventor support letter – Louis Foreman - June 25, 2011

The Coalition for 21st Century Patent Reform - June 24, 2011

American Bankers Association, American Council of Life Insurers, American Financial Services Association, American Insurance Association, The Clearing House Association, Consumer Bankers Association, Credit Union National Association, The Financial Services Rountable, The Independent Community Bankers of America, Mortgage Bankers Association, National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies, Property Casualty Insurers Association of America, Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association - June 23, 2011

National Association of Manufacturers - June 22, 2011

U.S. Chamber of Commerce - June 22, 2011

Partnership for New York City - June 21, 2011

American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Consumer Action, National Association of Enrolled Agents, Financial Planning Association, Tax Justice Network USA, Partnership for Philanthropic Planning, Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc., American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, Citizens for Tax Justice and USPIRG - June 21, 2011

Coalition for 21st Century Patent Reform Statement - June 21, 2011

National Retail Foundation - June 21, 2011

Financial Services Roundtable - June 21, 2011

National Association of Manufacturers - June 20, 2011

National Association of Realtors - June 20, 2011

Kodak - June 15, 2011

U.S. Chamber of Commerce - June 14, 2011

American Bankers Association, American Council of Life Insurers, American Financial Services Association, American Insurance Association, The Clearing House Association, Consumer Bankers Association, Credit Union National Association, The Financial Services Roundtable, The Independent Community Bankers of America, Mortgage Bankers Association, National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies, Property Casualty Insurers Association of America, Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association - June 14, 2011

Information Technology Industry Council - June 14, 2011

Biotechnology Industry Organization - June 14, 2011

Association of American Universities, American Council on Education, Association of American Medical Colleges, Association of Public and Land-grant Universities - June 14, 2011

FRC Action - June 14, 2011

Susan B. Anthony List - June 14, 2011

Business Software Alliance - June 13, 2011

Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America - June 13, 2011

General Counsels' Letter of Support for Fee Diversion Provision - June 13, 2011

International Trademark Association (INTA) - June 13, 2011

Mass Industry Letter - June 13, 2011

Coalition for Patent Fairness - June 13, 2011

Texas Society of Certified Public Accountants - June 13, 2011

Texas Instruments Incorporated - June 13, 2011

American Bar Association - June 13, 2011

The National Treasury Employees Union - June 8, 2011

Facebook - June 1, 2011

Presidents of the University of Michigan, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, Stanford University, University of Texas Austin, and Yale University - May 27, 2011

Independent Inventor support letter – Louis Foreman - May 4, 2011

Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council - April 25, 2011

Financial Services Roundtable (FSR), the American Insurance Association (AIA), The Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA), the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA), and the American Bankers Association (ABA) - April 14, 2011

American Institute of CPAs - April 13, 2011

SAS Institute - April 5, 2011

Independent Inventors

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
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