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✅   USPTO Director Takes Control of Expanded Discretionary Denials Amid PTAB Staffing Concerns

Politics

by Dennis Crouch In a significant procedural shift, Acting USPTO Director Coke Morgan Stewart has announced a new "Interim Process for PTAB Workload Management" that fundamentally changes aspects of how America Invents Act (AIA) patent challenges are handled. The March 26, 2025 memorandum bifurcates the institution decision process by centralizing discretionary denial authority with the Director herself. This follows the Feburary 28, 2025 action rescindingformer Director Vidal's June 2022 memorandum that had significantly curtailed discretionary denials based on the Fintiv factors when parallel district court litigation is pending. I expect this change will substantially increase the percent of IPR/PRG petitions denied at the institution stage.

patentlyo.com     Mar 29, 2025