Fast Track Patent Reform Sees a Few Bumps

Lately, Congress has been in a rush for patent reform becasue of the litany of problems that have become regular fodder for IP lawyers and corporations: crushing backlogs, an ever-increase scope of what can be patented, complaints about the quality of patents granted, lack of modern IT systems to help the Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) operate in a more efficient manner. But there has also been concern whether the haste might lead to more patent waste. Now a group of Republican senators has sent a letter (via Dennis Crouch's Patently-O blog) to both Democrat Patrick Leahy and Republican Arlen Specter on the Senate Judiciary Committee about whether slowing the impulse to fix and thinking over the steps before taking them might be a wiser approach in the long run.