During an address at the IPBC Global 2025, Acting USPTO Director Coke Morgan Stewart outlined strategies to reduce the patent backlog inherited from the Biden Administration. She emphasized a shift in focus towards third-party submissions of prior art during examination rather than inter partes review challenges. Currently, the backlog stands at approximately 806,000 applications, with a target of reducing this to the 500,000 range. The USPTO is prioritizing examination activities and introducing bonuses for examiners to streamline application processing and improve quality of outcomes.
Through the new PTAB processes, the Office is trying to send a message to stakeholders-do not wait to file an IPR.
We are already making headway by chipping away at the record backlog inherited from the Biden Administration.
The goal is to bring the inventory of unexamined patent applications down into the 500,000 range, similar to the first Trump Administration.
The Office has instituted a new bonus plan where examiners and supervisors can earn bonuses for examining more applications each quarter.
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