Senator Cornyn Praises Passage of House Patent Bill

The House of Representatives passed the Innovation Act, a bill to reduce abusive patent litigation. I introduced the Patent Abuse Reduction Act in the Senate earlier this year.

Abusive patent litigation poses a direct threat to Texas innovators and job-creators, and I applaud the House for passing a bipartisan bill to curb lawsuits that are causing serious harm to our economy.

Republicans and Democrats both recognize the depth of the problem, and I look forward to taking up this debate in the Senate.

We must work to pass a bill that will bring fairness to our patent system by deterring so-called ‘patent trolls’ looking for a quick payout, while protecting the rights of responsible intellectual property holders.

Abusive patent litigation, exemplified by a growing number of “patent trolls,” threatens the innovation patents were created to protect. Patent litigation abuse saddles American innovators and job-creators, from start-ups to our nation’s largest employers, with expensive litigation. It directs resources away from research, development, wages and economic growth.

The Patent Abuse Reduction Act will modernize patent litigation and protect innovators unfairly targeted by abusive patent litigation. The bill would require plaintiffs to disclose the substance of their claims and reveal their identities when they file their lawsuit; allow defendants to hale into court interested parties; bring fairness to the discovery process; and shift responsibility for the cost of litigation to the losing party. These reforms will deter patent litigation abusers without prejudicing the rights of responsible intellectual property holders.