Hank Johnson: “I think it is time this morning to reveal a little bit of truth. We have had reports of trolls just running through the…”

“I think it is time this morning to reveal a little bit of truth. We have had reports of trolls just running through the marketplace of America. Trolls--you know those, the ones that hang out under bridges and scare you when you were a child. A troll is just something that is, oh boy, it is to be avoided. So all patent plaintiffs bringing actions to protect their patents, we are now calling them trolls. That is not true; that is not accurate. In fact, it is very inaccurate. Only 5 percent of the patent cases that are filed in the courts of this country could be considered done in bad faith. So you could call those plaintiffs, I suppose, patent trolls. But 5 percent of the litigation does not equate to ``we are being overrun by patent trolls.'' That is just not correct. There is a problem with abusive litigation. So how do you get at that? How do you--without closing the courthouse door on plaintiffs seeking to assert their rights to their patents, and those plaintiffs tend to be small entities, mom-and-pop inventors back in the garage or down in the basement, some 28-year-old ex-Harvard junior who dropped out and comes up with the next thing that explodes in the technology field--how do we protect those folks who are trying to honestly protect their patents? I submit that H.R. 3309 goes way beyond what is necessary. It also has some constitutional implications. The Rules Enabling Act was passed by Congress back in 1934.…”