ANA Joins Letter Urging Senate to Adopt Legislation to Deal with Patent Trolls

ANA has joined four other associations in sending a letter to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Ranking Member Charles Grassley (R-IA) in support of provisions in S. 1720, the Patent Transparency and Improvements Act. This bill would allow the Federal Trade Commission, using its Section 5 authority to prohibit unfair or deceptive acts or practices, to go after bad-faith demand letters that patent trolls send to unsuspecting businesses and nonprofits across the country.  

These letters, which come out of nowhere and are increasingly used to harass businesses and nonprofits (including ANA members), often threaten litigation as leverage to extract a “licensing fee” from the recipient.  Recipients often settle the claim rather than face a lawsuit in federal court. Our letter urges Congress to adopt this legislation as a way of preventing this tactic from continuing.  

The Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on the legislation today.

If you have any questions, you can reach Dan Jaffe in ANA’s Washington, D.C. office at 202.296.2359 or at djaffe@ana.net.