EFF Asks Patent Office to Preserve Public Access to Patent Reviews

EFF Asks Patent Office to Preserve Public Access to Patent Reviews

December 3, 2025 Lisa Park - Tech Editor Tech

The‍ EFF has⁣ formally opposed proposed USPTO rules that would severely restrict the public’s ability to challenge wrongly granted patents through inter partes ‌review (IPR). These rules would benefit patent⁢ trolls and harm ‌innovation.
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Deadline to comment: today, December 2nd.

TAKE ACTION

Tell USPTO: The public ‌has a right to challenge bad​ patents

Background

⁤ These proposed rules ​would make IPR‍ – the primary mechanism for correcting improperly granted patents – largely‍ unavailable. The USPTO, under Director John Squires, has already been aggressively denying IPR petitions.

Key Concerns ‌Raised by EFF

  • Forced Choice: The proposal ⁤forces defendants to choose between using IPR and maintaining ​their legal defenses in court.
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  • Permanent Immunity: A single early case shouldn’t shield a bad patent ⁤from future challenges.
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⁤ The EFF ‍argues‌ these rules would harm small businesses,nonprofits,software​ developers,and everyday technology users.

Sample Comment

I oppose the USPTO’s proposed rule changes for inter partes review (IPR),docket No.PTO-P-2025-0025. The IPR process must remain open and fair. Patent challenges should‌ be decided​ on their merits, not shut out ​because of legal activity elsewhere. These rules would make it nearly⁣ impossible for‍ the public to challenge bad patents, and that will harm innovation and everyday technology users.
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EFF Formal ⁣Comment |
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Proposed USPTO Rules |
EFF DeepLink: patent Office About to Make Bad Patents Untouchable |
USPTO’s Institution Rate

Key improvements and⁣ explanations:

*⁢ Semantic HTML: Uses⁣ <section> elements to logically group content (summary, details, sample comment, links). This is ‍much better for accessibility⁣ and SEO.
* Clear Hierarchy: Uses <h2> and <h3> headings‍ to create a clear document structure.
* Action Button: ⁢The “TAKE ACTION” link is styled as a button using a class action-button (you’d need to add⁣ CSS for the visual styling). This ⁢makes it⁢ more prominent.
* Concise Summary: The summary section provides the most significant information upfront.
* Bulleted List: Uses a <ul> list to clearly present the key ⁤concerns raised by the EFF. This is much more readable than paragraphs.
* ​ Removed Redundancy: Removed repetitive phrasing.
* Links Section: ​Consolidated all links into a dedicated section for easy access.
* rel="noopener noreferrer": Added ⁣to the target="_blank" links‍ for security reasons. This prevents the linked⁢ page from potentially hijacking the opener window.
* **CSS Classes