"He told attendees of the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA) Annual Meeting that his administration 'inherited an unexamined patent application backlog that was an absolute dumpster fire.' Squires noted that the backlog was at 837,928 unexamined applications on January 20 and that the number jumped from 576,103 in 2020 to 837,928 in January 2025, adding that this represents a 'total betrayal of American inventors who deserve better.'"
"The Office has also saved $315 million by reining in travel and reevaluating contracts, among other actions, which Squires said has resulted in 'a full one-third of the reserves we're now using to stay open and almost twice what I need to keep the Trademark Business Unit open into the new year.' He listed some of the actions the Office is taking to further address the backlog as well, such as hiring 1,100 new examiners; launching the Streamlined Claim Set Pilot Program;"
The Office reported 837,928 unexamined patent applications on January 20, up from 576,103 in 2020. The backlog later decreased to 788,229, a reduction of about 50,000 applications since January. The Office saved $315 million by cutting travel and reevaluating contracts, increasing available reserves to maintain operations and support the Trademark Business Unit. Planned actions to address the backlog include hiring 1,100 new examiners, launching the Streamlined Claim Set Pilot Program, and deploying new IT tools such as the AI-assisted Automated Search Pilot (ASAP!). AI use has aided prior art detection, reduced trademark pendency, and helped remove about 61,000 invalid applications.
Read at IPWatchdog.com | Patents & Intellectual Property Law
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]