Intellectual Property: USPTO Has Made Progress in Hiring Examiners, but Challenges to Retention Remain;Report to the Congress

摘要

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is responsible for issuing U.S. patents that protect new ideas and investments in innovation and creativity. Recent increases in both the complexity and volume of patent applications have increased the time it takes to process patents and have raised concerns about the validity of the patents USPTO issues. Adding to these challenges is the difficulty that USPTO has had attracting and retaining qualified staff. In this context, GAO was asked to obtain information about USPTO's patent organization. Specifically GAO reviewed (1) overall progress in implementing the initiatives in its strategic plan$ (2) efforts to attract and retain a qualified patent workforce$ and (3) remaining challenges, if any, in attracting and retaining a qualified patent workforce.