“These three bills would bolster the reliability, certainty, and strength of American patents,” the groups write. “They would clarify and refine elements of the patenting process, making it easier for legitimate patent claims to reach fruition and withstand what would become fairer, more consistent, impartial scrutiny once granted.”

“We strongly urge your support by cosponsoring the bipartisan, bicameral PREVAIL, PERA, and the RESTORE Patent Rights Acts. We look forward to working with you to advance this legislation to enactment,” they added.

The Promoting and Respecting Economically Vital American Innovation Leadership, or PREVAIL, Act was introduced by Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) in the last Congress with an aim to invest in inventors in the United States, maintain the United States as the leading innovation economy in the world, and protect the property rights of the inventors that grow the economy of the United States.”

PERA, or the Patent Eligibility Restoration Act, was introduced by Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) also in the last Congress and aimed to restore patent eligibility to several fields. Lastly, the Realizing Engineering, Science, and Technology Opportunities by Restoring Exclusive Patent Rights Act works to give patent owners the right to a “rebuttable presumption that the court should grant a permanent injunction with respect to that infringing conduct,” if a court finds that there’s been an infringement of a right secured by patent.

All three acts could work as pro-patent freedom legislation, potentially helping American intellectual property owners fight back against Big Tech and China.

“The weakening of intellectual property protections over the last 20 years has greatly reduced the reliability and strength of American patents. This allows hostile actors like China and Big Tech to benefit, enriching themselves and stealing intellectual property from American small businesses and individual inventors. The passage of PERA, PREVAIL, and the RESTORE Acts is imperative to reversing the decline of IP rights,” signatory James Edwards, the executive director of Conservatives for Property Rights, told the Washington Examiner.

A May 2024 Center for Strategic & International Studies analysis said that weakening rights surrounding intellectual property has put the United State back in its innovation race against China.

“Given the benefits of a robust, market-based IP system, the United States would seem to have the long-term advantage in any innovation competition with China,” they wrote. “Yet, a series of court decisions and pieces of legislation over the last two decades has weakened IP rights in the United States, potentially undermining the competitiveness of the U.S. innovation ecosystem. China, in contrast, has spent decades strengthening IP protections to encourage innovation and attract private investment.”

Big Tech has taken advantage of the patent system to overcome smaller technology companies in their own innovation races. “When a startup or independent inventor creates a groundbreaking product, they rely on their patents to protect their intellectual property,” the Ramey law firm said in an analysis.

“Unfortunately, the sheer size and influence of tech giants can often lead to scenarios where these smaller entities are pressured into submission, either through intimidation, litigation, or unfair business practices,” they added.

Edwards wants the legislation because it “would repair the worst damage inflicted on our patent system over the past two decades.”

“Pro-property rights conservatives support PERA, the PREVAIL Act, and the RESTORE Patent Rights Act because these three bills together would repair the worst damage inflicted on our patent system over the past two decades: tremendous uncertainty over what is eligible for a patent, the lack of quiet title in one’s patent because of a rigged process to perpetually challenge issued patents and likely invalidate them, and the inability to stop ongoing infringement with an injunction,” Edwards said.

OVER 20 CONSERVATIVE GROUPS SIGN LETTER CALLING ON FCC TO UPDATE ‘ANTIQUATED AND HARMFUL’ RESTRICTIONS

The U.S. Patent and Trade Office under the Trump administration froze hiring for the first few months of the administration, as many other government entities underwent Department of Government Efficiency scrutiny, before recently restarting hiring last week.

Under Acting Director Coke Morgan Stewart, the office recently said they were working to cut down a backlog of over 838,000 patent applications to under 500,000 with the help of artificial intelligence on certain rejections. As of earlier this month, the office was down to 806,000 unexamined applications.