Hearings on Patent Reform Legislation Delayed over Damages Provisions

On March 19, 2009, the U.S. Senate Panel considering the Patent Law Reform legislation introduced this month by Sen. Arlen Specter and others decided to delay further hearings to allow more preliminary consideration of the provisions of the legislation relating to damages which can be awarded for patent infringement. Opposing industry groups have argued on one hand that the legislation properly revises the current damages calculation to require that damages awarded be commensurate with the value a patented improvement brings to product or process, and on the other hand that the proposed reform goes too far to reduce the disincentive to infringement, and thereby to reduce the value of patents.