In 2011, Congress enacted a law that created a new tribunal at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to streamline patent challenges. The Patent Trial and Appeal Board was intended to provide a more efficient alternative to the federal court system for patent owners and patent challengers to resolve their disputes.

In practice, the PTAB has become a forum for large companies — particularly in the tech sector — to weaponize their financial and legal resources against smaller competitors. Under current rules, big corporations can file multiple challenges to a single patent at both the Patent Trial and Appeal Board and in federal court. These duplicative challenges wear small businesses down and force them to divert valuable resources away from R&D.

Meanwhile, a series of misguided Supreme Court rulings decreed certain categories of high-tech inventions ineligible for patents. These decisions have stifled progress in industries such as medical technology and advanced computer software. In the five years following the rulings, eligibility concerns led to the abandonment of some 1,300 patent applications.

Thankfully, Congress has the power to fix these problems and is now considering two bipartisan bills that would make a big difference. The Promoting and Respecting Economically Vital American Innovation Leadership (PREVAIL) Act would address the imbalances in the PTAB system, leveling the playing field so that smaller players have a fair chance to defend their patents against large, well-funded corporations.

The Patent Eligibility Restoration Act (PERA) would clarify that inventions are indeed eligible for patent in areas the Supreme Court closed down based on its narrow reading of existing law. PERA would assure researchers, entrepreneurs, investors, and the courts that transformational technologies like rapid blood tests and AI-integrated software are indeed eligible for patent protection and are once again safe to invest in.

By passing both PREVAIL and PERA, we can provide the clarity and fairness that inventors need to bring their breakthroughs to market.