PTAB Statistics: Fiscal Year 2014

This page reports Patent Trial and Appeal Board trial activity in fiscal year 2014, which ran from October 1, 2013 to September 30, 2014. Each figure is a count of USPTO Open Data Portal records; the methodology on the statistics page explains the counting rules.

Figures by Trial Type

Petitions are counted by filing date. Institution decisions, final written decisions and terminations are counted by the date of the event, so a petition filed in one fiscal year may be decided in the next.

Measure	IPR	PGR	CBM	DER	Total
Petitions filed	1,310	2	177	4	1,493
Institution decisions: instituted	562	0	93	0	655
Institution decisions: denied	306	0	50	3	359
Institution rate (by petition)	64.7%	—	65.0%	0.0%	64.6%
Final written decisions	150	0	16	0	166

Terminations without a final written decision	Count
Settlements	125
Adverse judgment	0
Dismissed	0
Other terminations	7

Records for this period do not distinguish settlements before institution from those after it, so only the total is shown.

Figures by Trial Type in Detail

Inter Partes Review (IPR)

In FY2014, 1,310 IPR petitions were filed (87.7% of all AIA petitions). Of 868 IPR institution decisions, 562 instituted a trial and 306 denied institution, a rate of 64.7%. The Board issued 150 IPR final written decisions. An IPR may be instituted only on a reasonable likelihood that the petitioner will prevail on at least one claim (35 U.S.C. § 314(a)), on grounds of anticipation or obviousness over patents and printed publications. See the inter partes review guide for the procedure.

Post-Grant Review (PGR)

In FY2014, 2 PGR petitions were filed (0.1% of all AIA petitions). No PGR institution decisions were recorded. The Board issued 0 PGR final written decisions. A PGR petition must be filed within nine months of grant and must show that it is more likely than not that at least one claim is unpatentable (35 U.S.C. § 324(a)). See the post-grant review guide for the procedure.

Covered Business Method Review (CBM)

In FY2014, 177 CBM petitions were filed (11.9% of all AIA petitions). Of 143 CBM institution decisions, 93 instituted a trial and 50 denied institution, a rate of 65.0%. The Board issued 16 CBM final written decisions. CBM review applied to covered business method patents and closed to new petitions on September 16, 2020. See the covered business method review guide for the procedure.

Derivation Proceedings (DER)

In FY2014, 4 DER petitions were filed (0.3% of all AIA petitions). Of 3 DER institution decisions, 0 instituted a trial and 3 denied institution, a rate of 0.0%. The Board issued 0 DER final written decisions. Derivation proceedings decide whether an inventor named in an earlier application derived the claimed invention from the petitioner’s inventor; they are few in number, so rates rest on small counts. See the guide to the Patent Trial and Appeal Board for the procedure.

How Proceedings Ended

Of the proceedings that ended during the period, 166 ended in a final written decision under 35 U.S.C. § 318, 125 in settlement under 35 U.S.C. § 317, 0 in adverse judgment, 0 by dismissal and 7 by other termination. Denials of institution are counted separately above. A final written decision can lead to estoppel against the petitioner; see estoppel arising from PTAB trials.

Summary

• Inter partes review accounted for 87.7% of petitions filed.
• Petitions rose by 930 from FY2013 (563), a change of 165.2%.
• The institution rate fell by 13.7 percentage points from 78.3% in FY2013.
• Of 298 proceedings that ended after institution or by settlement or other termination in the year, 166 (55.7%) ended in a final written decision.

Statistics by Date in FY2014

Figures as of specific dates in this fiscal year, reconstructed from the same records:

• PTAB trial statistics as of January 23, 2014: 361 petitions filed in FY2014 to that date
• PTAB trial statistics as of March 13, 2014: 493 petitions filed in FY2014 to that date
• PTAB trial statistics as of April 10, 2014: 607 petitions filed in FY2014 to that date
• PTAB trial statistics as of April 24, 2014: 687 petitions filed in FY2014 to that date
• PTAB trial statistics as of May 8, 2014: 729 petitions filed in FY2014 to that date
• PTAB trial statistics as of May 22, 2014: 803 petitions filed in FY2014 to that date
• PTAB trial statistics as of June 12, 2014: 923 petitions filed in FY2014 to that date
• PTAB trial statistics as of July 10, 2014: 1,094 petitions filed in FY2014 to that date
• PTAB trial statistics as of August 7, 2014: 1,204 petitions filed in FY2014 to that date
• PTAB trial statistics as of September 11, 2014: 1,405 petitions filed in FY2014 to that date

Other Fiscal Years

FY2013 · FY2015 · All fiscal years and charts

Final written decision outcomes (all, some or no challenged claims unpatentable) are not reported because the USPTO records state them for too few decisions; see the methodology. Figures may differ from the USPTO’s published reports. For how trials end and why reported rates differ, see reading PTAB trial outcomes.