Patent values under threat with Supreme Court ‘inter partes’ review decision

On 12 June 2017, the US Supreme Court granted certiorari in Oil States Energy Services LLC v Greene’s Energy Group LLC, No. 16-712 - a decision which could significantly affect the value of patents in the US. The question before the Supreme Court is whether the five-year-old inter partes review (IPR) process, which was established as a mechanism in the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to challenge the validity of already-issued patents, violates the Constitution by extinguishing private property rights through a non-Article III forum and without a jury.