The America Invents Act created various procedures via which the validity of patents can be tested. Most of the procedures permit third parties to either participate or provide relevant information to the Patent Office during or following the examination process. Both the new post grant review and the new inter partes review allow third party participation in the proceedings with rights to appeal decisions. The most commonly used procedure will be inter partes review, which effectively replaces inter partes reexamination for review of patents. The proceeding to be used in a given situation will be governed by the circumstances, strategies and costs.
This Post Grant Challenge Chart summarizes the various proceedings, legal burdens, important limitations and filing fees for each.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.