Supreme Court Holds That Federal Agencies Cannot Petition for Post-Issuance Review of Patents Under the AIA

摘要

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 in Return Mail Inc. v. United States Postal Service that a federal agency cannot petition for the review of an issued patent under the America Invents Act (AIA). This decision prevents the U.S. government from challenging the validity of issued patents through inter partes reviews (IPRs), post-grant reviews (PGRs), and covered business method reviews (CBM reviews).