Hearing on Patent Quality Enhancement on April 5

On April 5, Lamar Smith will address -->The extent to which the quality of U.S.-issued patents has deteriorated in recent years and the resulting effect on the American economy and --> Are most patents issued by PTO of poor quality?

Witnesses: The Honorable Jon Dudas, Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office; Mr. Robert A. Stewart, Director and Chief Patent Counsel of the Americas, UBS AG; Mr. Jim Balsillie, Chairman and Co-CEO, Research in Motion (RIM), manufacturers of the BlackBerry; Mr. Mark Lemley, William H. Neukom Professor of Law, Stanford Law School.