William F. Smith: “I strongly endorse H.R. 1908, the Patent Reform Act of 2007, and I urge my colleagues to support American inventors…”

“I strongly endorse H.R. 1908, the Patent Reform Act of 2007, and I urge my colleagues to support American inventors, American businesses, and the American people by voting for this bill today. Last year we laid a substantial foundation for patent reform. It was a good start, but we need to finish the job now. The Patent Reform Act is the most significant and comprehensive update to patent law since the 1952 act was enacted. The Judiciary Committee has undertaken such an initiative because changes to the patent system are necessary to bolster the U.S. economy and improve the quality of living for all Americans. There are two major reasons the committee wrote the bill: first, too many patents of questionable integrity have been approved. Second, holders of these weak patents discovered a novel way to make money, not by commercializing the patents but by suing manufacturing companies whose operations might incorporate the patents. This combination of weak patents and 'seat-of-the-patents' litigation has hurt the economy. Most companies don't want to risk shutting down their operations in response to a questionable lawsuit. Nor do they have much faith in a legal system in which juries and even judges become confused by the complexities of patent law. The result: legalized extortion in which companies pay a lot of money to use suspect patents.”