U.S. Patent Small Claims Court

The USPTO engaged ACUS to conduct an independent study of issues associated with and options for designing a small claims patent court. The resulting report, which was ultimately be submitted to Congress, addressed, among other topics, whether there is need for a small claims patent court, the feasibility and potential structure of such a court, and the relevant legal, policy, and practical considerations in establishing a small claims court.

The ACUS Office of the Chair conducted the study and prepared the report with the assistance of Professors Kali Murray (Marquette Law), Arti Rai (Duke Law), and Melissa Wasserman (University of Texas Law). 

The Office of the Chair engaged with a wide range of interested persons as part of its study. To ensure all stakeholders had an opportunity to provide input, on May 3, 2022, ACUS published a request for information in the Federal Register welcoming views, information, and data on all aspects of a potential small claims patent court or small claims patent proceeding and its impact. ACUS extended the public comment period through August 26, 2022 and subsequently through September 2, 2022.

A consultative group of academic experts and legal practitioners, listed below, advised ACUS on questions regarding the study’s methodology for quantitative, qualitative, and legal research. Consultative group meetings were open to the public, and meeting minutes are posted to this webpage.

The Office of the Chair also conducted interviews with a wide range of stakeholders. Interviewees were selected based, in part, on public comments received in response to the request for information and input from the consultative group.

Consultative Group Members

A consultative group of academic experts and legal practitioners advised ACUS on questions regarding the study’s methodology for quantitative, qualitative, and legal research. Members of the consultative group were:

News Releases

Contacts:

Implementation Contact

Project Documents

Name Committee Type Date File
Public Comment - Mary Fletcher 2 2022.08.26 Comment Download Public Comment - Mary Fletcher 2 2022.08.26
Public Comment - James Bertini 2022.06.06 Comment Download Public Comment - James Bertini 2022.06.06
Public Comment - Charlie Roscoe 2022.09.02 Comment Download Public Comment - Charlie Roscoe 2022.09.02
Public Comment - Joel Weiss 2022.09.02 Comment Download Public Comment - Joel Weiss 2022.09.02
Public Comment - Ronald Docie 2022.09.02 Comment Download Public Comment - Ronald Docie 2022.09.02
Public Comment - Kelly Tong 2022.08.30 Comment Download Public Comment - Kelly Tong 2022.08.30
Public Comment - Damian Gallina 2022.08.29 Comment Download Public Comment - Damian Gallina 2022.08.29
Public Comment - Peter Wright 2022.08.29 Comment Download Public Comment - Peter Wright 2022.08.29
Public Comment - Carrie Hafeman 2022.08.26 Comment Download Public Comment - Carrie Hafeman 2022.08.26
Public Comment - Susan Braden 2022.08.26 Comment Download Public Comment - Susan Braden 2022.08.26
Public Comment - Larry Glaser 2022.05.11 - 1 Comment Download Public Comment - Larry Glaser 2022.05.11 - 1
Public Comment - Chris Flood 2022.09.02 Comment Download Public Comment - Chris Flood 2022.09.02
Public Comment - Juliette Fassett 2 2022.09.02 Comment Download Public Comment - Juliette Fassett 2 2022.09.02
Public Comment - Schumann Rafizadeh 2022.09.02 Comment Download Public Comment - Schumann Rafizadeh 2022.09.02
Public Comment - Li Decker 2022.08.30 Comment Download Public Comment - Li Decker 2022.08.30
Public Comment - Darrell Metcalf 2022.08.29 Comment Download Public Comment - Darrell Metcalf 2022.08.29
Public Comment - Richard Torczon 2022.08.29 Comment Download Public Comment - Richard Torczon 2022.08.29
Public Comment - Dan Brown 2022.08.26 Comment Download Public Comment - Dan Brown 2022.08.26
Public Comment - Larry Glaser 2022.05.11 - 2 Comment Download Public Comment - Larry Glaser 2022.05.11 - 2
Public Comment - Dave Madson 2022.09.02 Comment Download Public Comment - Dave Madson 2022.09.02
Public Comment - Juliette Fassett 2022.09.02 Comment Download Public Comment - Juliette Fassett 2022.09.02
Public Comment - Shalom Wertsberger 2 2022.09.02 Comment Download Public Comment - Shalom Wertsberger 2 2022.09.02
Public Comment - Mike Kramer 2022.08.30 Comment Download Public Comment - Mike Kramer 2022.08.30
Public Comment - Dirk Tomsin 2022.08.29 Comment Download Public Comment - Dirk Tomsin 2022.08.29
Public Comment - Rick Fletcher 2022.08.26 Comment Download Public Comment - Rick Fletcher 2022.08.26
Public Comment - David Breed 2022.08.26 Comment Download Public Comment - David Breed 2022.08.26
Comment from Jeffrey Sears 2022.08.04 Comment Download Comment from Jeffrey Sears 2022.08.04
Public Comment - Michael Risch 2022.05.05 Comment Download Public Comment - Michael Risch 2022.05.05
Public Comment - David Boundy 2022.09.02 Comment Download Public Comment - David Boundy 2022.09.02
Public Comment - Keith Mullin 2022.09.02 Comment Download Public Comment - Keith Mullin 2022.09.02

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Consultative Group Meeting #2 - U.S. Patent Small Claims Court

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Location name
ACUS will be hosting this meeting remotely. Members of the public interested in participating should contact Kazia Nowacki at knowacki@acus.gov and info@acus.gov to RSVP and request attendance information.
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