AIPLA Comments to the Patent Public Advisory Committee Public Hearing in the Proposed Patent Fee Schedule

AIPLA has, in the past, expressed the view that fees, in the aggregate, should recover 100% of the costs  of  the  USPTO,  and  that  the  relationship  between “front-end” (filing, search, examination etc.) and “back-end” (maintenance, renewal, etc.) fees should be maintained. 

This is to say, for example, that search and examination fees for patents should not necessarily be set to recover the entire costs of front-end processing for patents and that a portion of such costs should continue to be  borne  by  maintenance  and  renewal  fees.

The  goal  should  be  to  find  a  balance  to  any  fee proposal to ensure that front-end fees remain low enough to allow a wide range of inventors and businesses to seek protection, making up the shortfall with back-end fees and maintenance fees.