Posts Tagged: "Capitol Hill"

IP VIPS Send Letter to Congress Countering Calls for Government Price Controls on Drugs

Twenty-five intellectual property luminaries sent a letter today to several members of Congress asking them to beware of misleading and inaccurate assertions by “activists and academics” that government price controls on drugs will lead to lower costs for consumers. The letter was sent to Senators Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Chairman and Ranking Member, respectively, of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions; and Representatives Jason Smith (R-MO) and Richard Neal (D-MA), Chairman and Ranking Member, respectively, of the House Committee on Ways and Means.

LIVE Panelists Predict Little Hope for Major Change from PTAB Rulemaking and Legislation

The general consensus of attendees at a panel held during IPWatchdog LIVE 2023, day two, is that the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) will never be eliminated. Open questions remain, however, on the effectiveness of PTAB reforms recently proposed by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Those rule changes, and similar legislative efforts in Congress, were the subject of “Dissecting PTAB Rulemaking & Legislation: Will it Make Things Any Better?”

House Judiciary Chief IP Counsel Tells IPWatchdog LIVE Attendees Eligibility Companion Bill to Be Introduced Soon

On day two of IPWatchdog LIVE, J. John Lee, Chief Counsel for Intellectual Property for the U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on the Judiciary, told those who are skeptical of the chances for Senators’ Tillis and Coons’ Patent Eligibility Restoration Act (PERA) to move forward that a House version of the bill is likely to be introduced in the near future. Lee, who is principal advisor on IP issues and helms the Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet, was speaking on a panel titled “Politics, Policy and Legislation at the Intersection of Intellectual Property,” which also featured David Jones of the High-Tech Inventors Alliance; Joe Matal of Haynes Boone, LLP and former U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) Acting Director and Acting Solicitor; and Eli Mazour of Harrity & Harrity.

This Week in Washington IP: One Year Review of the CHIPS Act, Pandemic Preparedness and Patents, and IP Standards Public Listening Session

This week in Washington IP news, the House IP Subcommittee evaluates IP competition with China, and the House Space Committee reviews one year of the CHIPS and Science Act. Elsewhere, the 78th UN General Assembly holds a high-level meeting on pandemic preparedness and vaccine patents.

This Week in Washington IP: Registering Trademarks in Mexico, Getting a Handle on Drug Prices, and Congress Talks AI

This week in Washington IP news, Congress holds a trio of hearings on artificial intelligence (AI) covering a variety of angles, from transparency to how the government is implementing the technology. Elsewhere, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) hosts an event about registering and enforcing trademarks in Mexico, and the American Enterprise Institute looks at balancing drug pricing and innovation.