2019 Year In Review

The greatly anticipated 2019 Year in Review is now live! We’re excited to announce this year’s version will be available in two different formats:

  • As a PDF document (as in years past).
  • In a responsive, online format available to Plus subscribers. This format allows you to edit filters in real time to instantly update the charts and focus on the data most applicable to your needs.
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Inside This Report

  • The number of new Patent Cases declined by 6.8%, while the number of new Patent Accusations declined by 18.8%, indicating both a decrease in the overall number of new cases and the complexity of individual cases, as measured by the number of asserted patents and litigants.
  • The Eastern District of Texas is a much less common venue for Patent Litigation than past years, taking only the 6th place among top courts. The District of Delaware holds 1st place, with 28.4% of new district court patent cases in 2019.
  • The District of Delaware continues to lag behind most top courts on multiple speed metrics, including Time to Claim Construction, Time to Summary Judgment, and Time to Trial.
  • Success rates of challenges to subject matter eligibility remain relatively uniform across the top patent courts and different stages of litigation, with the exception of WDTX, which denied 14 early § 101 challenges in 2019.
  • For the first time since the Board’s inception, the number of new PTAB petitions decreased in 2019. Patentability determinations in Final Written Decisions were also more favorable to Patent Owners than any previous year.