Here is a report on recent news and commentary related to the Federal Circuit and its cases. Today we highlight:
- an article by a former Federal Circuit judge suggesting “[a] bipartisan consensus is quietly emerging in Washington” to “modernize America’s intellectual property system”;
- a report covering how “John A. Squires, President Donald Trump’s nominee to run the US Patent and Trademark Office, was voted out of the Senate Judiciary Committee by a 20-2 vote”;
- a blog post describing how “the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) posted job openings for patent examiners and trademark examining attorneys on USAJobs.gov,” ending the USPTO’s hiring freeze that was put in place when President Trump took office in January; and
- a blog post examining how the Federal Circuit “stands today with a dramatically different judicial composition than at any point in its 43-year history.”
Former Federal Circuit Judge Kathleen O’Malley authored an article published by Law360 suggesting “[a] bipartisan consensus is quietly emerging in Washington” to “modernize America’s intellectual property system.” O’Malley asked readers to consider “how Congress is advancing a trio of bipartisan bills.” One of the bills O’Malley outlined is the Patent Eligibility Restoration Act, which she suggested would establish “clear standards for what can and cannot be patented, ensuring that transformative technologies are not unfairly excluded from protection. O’Malley also indicated that the RESTORE Patent Rights Act “would effectively overturn an ill-conceived Supreme Court ruling that made it difficult for inventors to stop unauthorized use of their patented ideas and designs.”
Michael Shapiro wrote a report for Bloomberg Law covering how “John A. Squires, President Donald Trump’s nominee to run the US Patent and Trademark Office, was voted out of the Senate Judiciary Committee by a 20-2 vote.” Shapiro described how Senators “voted to advance Squires nomination, with seven Democrats joining all the committee’s Republicans in supporting him.”
Gene Quinn penned a blog post for IP Watchdog describing how “the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) posted job openings for patent examiners and trademark examining attorneys on USAJobs.gov,” ending the USPTO’s hiring freeze that was put in place when President Trump took office in January. Quinn observed how the USPTO “[had] been tirelessly working with the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) for 4+ months in an effort to convince OPM to give the USPTO a waiver.” According to Quinn, the USPTO “receiving authority by the Trump Administration to hire was no easy lift.”
Dennis Crouch wrote a blog post on PatentlyO examining how “the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit stands today with a dramatically different judicial composition than at any point in its 43-year history.” Crouch noted how, “[a]s of June 2025, the court comprises eleven active judges—only three appointed by Republican presidents and eight by Democratic presidents, representing a 73% Democratic majority.” Crouch suggested “[t]he court’s current composition has taken on heightened significance as it confronts one of the most politically charged cases in its history: V.O.S. Selections v. Trump, challenging President Trump’s global tariff program under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).” For more information on this case, check out the relevant case page.