WASHINGTON – Congress is back this week from Spring Break, and so is the effort to address the abusive practices of patent trolls.

Yesterday a hearing took place in the House Judiciary Committee on H.R. 9, the Innovation Act, legislation that addresses the abusive practices of patent assertion entities – known as patent trolls – that threaten and file abusive litigation against businesses, including convenience stores.

NACS commented to committee members that patent trolls present a serious and costly threat to the U.S. convenience store industry, noting that it’s quite common for retailers to receive several patent demand letters each year that threaten litigation if they refuse to pay a licensing settlement fee.

Most convenience stores do not have patent counsel or experience in patent litigation; therefore, it is often cheaper to settle a patent infringement claim rather than fight it. Patent trolls know and exploit this, often asserting infringements claims that are not based on a legitimate patent claim.

Most Committee members expressed their support for the Innovation Act, which passed the House of Representatives in the last Congress by a vote of 325-91. During the hearing, Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office Michelle Lee said that many of the provisions contained in the Innovation Act would help curtail abusive patent litigation. Specifically, she noted, the “customer stay” provision would be particularly helpful to small businesses, which would allow a product manufacturer to defend a patent lawsuit rather than the end-user customer.

In addition to supporting the Innovation Act, NACS is actively involved with efforts by the United for Patent Reform Coalition to reign in abusive patent troll tactics.

Read more in NACS Magazine about why NACS became involved in the patent trolls issue.