Attorney Authored

Planning for a PTAB Deposition

By Michael A. Stramiello & Arvind Jairam

Since taking effect in September 2012, the Leahy– Smith America Invents Act (AIA) has revolutionized patent litigation, largely through its creation of postgrant trials at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. These trials provide a quick path for the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) to review the patentability of issued claims. Typically carried out over 12 months, they require fast-paced scrutiny governed by a complex framework of statutes, rules, and other guidance. Counsel should be particularly aware of this framework in the context of depositions, which play a key role in post-grant trials before the PTAB.