HOUSE IP SUBCOMMITTEE TO HOLD HEARING ON RENEWING USPTO FEE-SETTING AUTHORITY
The House Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, Artificial Intelligence, and the Internet will hold a hearing today, Wednesday, September 2, 2026, at 10:00 AM ET, titled “Renewal of USPTO Fee Setting Authority: Giving Full Effect to the America Invents Act.”
The USPTO’s fee-setting authority under Section 10 of the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (AIA) allows the agency to set and adjust patent and trademark fees through notice-and-comment rulemaking rather than relying on Congress to legislate fee changes directly, as it did pre-AIA. That authority, last extended by the 2018 SUCCESS Act, is set to expire on September 16, 2026.
H.R. 6500, the Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act passed by the Senate in August, would fund the USPTO at its FY2026 appropriation level through December 11 and extend the agency’s fee-setting authority through the same date. The House, whose H.R. 9770 does not address the fee-setting authority, must concur in the Senate bill before the measure is sent to the President. If a fee-setting authority extension survives in whatever CR is enacted, the authority will need to be revisited as part of a 2027 funding package.
Yesterday IPO sent a letter to Subcommittee Chair DARRELL ISSA (R-CA) and Ranking Member HANK JOHNSON (D-GA) expressing support for extending the USPTO’s authority.
The letter, sent jointly with the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA) and the International Trademark Association (INTA), also recommended that any extension include a sunset provision. The letter also highlights the value the three associations place on the Patent Public Advisory Committee (PPAC) and Trademark Public Advisory Committee (TPAC) as channels for engaging with the Office and seeks the Subcommittee’s support for keeping both committees fully staffed consistent with 35 U.S.C. § 5.
The hearing will be held in 2141 Rayburn House Office Building and streamed on the House Judiciary Committee website.
AI INSIGHTS: FEDERAL CIRCUIT DECISION OFFERS GUIDANCE FOR DRAFTING AI PATENT CLAIMS
By Ryan Phelan, Marshall, Gerstein & Borun LLP
A recent Federal Circuit decision involving software patents provides a useful lesson for drafting patent claims covering artificial intelligence technologies. In Applications in Internet Time, LLC v. Salesforce, Inc., Salesforce argued that the independent claim’s “automatically detecting” function to be performed using “intelligent agents.” The district court adopted that construction and relied on it in granting Salesforce summary judgment of noninfringement and invalidity.
The Federal Circuit rejected the narrower construction. A dependent claim expressly added the intelligent-agent limitation, which the court found supported a broader reading of the independent claim under the doctrine of claim differentiation. The court therefore vacated the summary judgment rulings, although it did not decide the ultimate questions of infringement or validity. While the case did not involve generative AI, the claim-differentiation principle has direct implications for patents covering AI and agent-based technologies.
For AI patent applicants and practitioners, the decision highlights the potential value of structuring claims so that independent claims capture broader AI-enabled functionality, while dependent claims address narrower implementations, such as large language models, autonomous agents, neural networks, or specific model architectures.
This approach can provide fallback positions while also helping preserve broader claim scope. However, the specification must support that broader scope, making coordination between the specification and claim hierarchy particularly important when drafting patents for rapidly evolving AI technologies.
NOW ACCEPTING NOMINATIONS FOR IPO BOARD OF DIRECTORS
The IPO Nominations Committee is accepting nominations from corporate members interested in serving on the IPO Board of Directors.
Regular Corporate Member Seats: regular corporate members are elected to serve two-year terms that begin January 1 and end December 31. These members are not eligible for election to a consecutive term. We will be nominating two companies at the Annual Meeting for a term beginning January 1, 2027
More information about board service is available on our website. To nominate your company or another company for the IPO Board of Directors, send the company name with the chief IP counsel’s name and contact information to jessica@ipo.org by Friday, September 4.
EARN ETHICS CLE CREDIT DURING IPO’S 2026 ANNUAL MEETING
Register for IPO’s Annual Meeting, September 27-29, and attend a session on “Ethics int the Age of AI” organized by IPO’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion; and AI, Data & New Emerging Technologies Committees. This panel will explore the ethical and practical challenges of using AI in IP law practice, from hiring and conflicts assessment to drafting and evaluating work product. It examines core duties of competence, confidentiality, and candor, alongside supervision obligations under ABA Model Rules 5.1 and 5.3 and Formal Opinion 512. The session highlights risks posed by AI-generated outputs and addresses billing fairness and oversight. Attendees will leave with practical guidance and best practices for responsible AI use. Panelists include BRYAN HART (Brooks Kushman P.C.), JOANNE LECKY (Murgitroyd), CEYDA MAISAMI (HP Inc.), and JUDA STRAWCZYNSKI (College of Patent Agents & Trademark Agents. Visit the website for additional information and to register.