Federal Circuit Faces Flood of Appeals Driven by AIA Reforms

Jon E. Wright discusses with Law360 the glut of appeals currently inundating the Federal Circuit’s docket stemming from proceedings at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB). Discussing the appellate situation, Wright said, “Conservatively, it is essentially one extra panel every day just dedicated to IPR [inter partes review] appeals. You see the problem the court is facing. Believe me, they are aware of it. They know it’s coming and they need to figure out how to deal with it.”

Law360 reports that while the Federal Circuit’s docket was light earlier this year, in August the Court has calendared 16 AIA appeals, a significant increase over previous months. Wright suggests that the figures for August are an indication of what the Court will face in the near future.