Patent Quality Assistance Act introduced with an eye toward enacting patent reform in the 109th Congress

The Patent Quality Assistance Act (H.R. 5299) was introduced near the end of the last session of Congress. The PQAA includes several patent reform measures, including establishment of a post-grant opposition procedure and a statutory presumption of obviousness for business method claims where the only point of novelty is the use of computer technology.

The sponsor of the bill, Representative Howard Berman, states that the timing of the bill is designed to "frame the debate" for the upcoming 109th Congress.

For more on the PQAA, see this PTP post.