PTAB Statistics: Fiscal Year 2016

This page reports Patent Trial and Appeal Board trial activity in fiscal year 2016, which ran from October 1, 2015 to September 30, 2016. 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	1,565	24	94	6	1,689
Institution decisions: instituted	880	11	52	0	943
Institution decisions: denied	648	7	58	0	713
Institution rate (by petition)	57.6%	61.1%	47.3%	—	56.9%
Final written decisions	643	3	70	0	716

Terminations without a final written decision	Count
Settlements	275
Adverse judgment	0
Dismissed	0
Other terminations	60

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 FY2016, 1,565 IPR petitions were filed (92.7% of all AIA petitions). Of 1,528 IPR institution decisions, 880 instituted a trial and 648 denied institution, a rate of 57.6%. The Board issued 643 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 FY2016, 24 PGR petitions were filed (1.4% of all AIA petitions). Of 18 PGR institution decisions, 11 instituted a trial and 7 denied institution, a rate of 61.1%. The Board issued 3 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 FY2016, 94 CBM petitions were filed (5.6% of all AIA petitions). Of 110 CBM institution decisions, 52 instituted a trial and 58 denied institution, a rate of 47.3%. The Board issued 70 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 FY2016, 6 DER petitions were filed (0.4% of all AIA petitions). No DER institution decisions were recorded. 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, 716 ended in a final written decision under 35 U.S.C. § 318, 275 in settlement under 35 U.S.C. § 317, 0 in adverse judgment, 0 by dismissal and 60 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.

Legal and Policy Context

On June 20, 2016, the Supreme Court decided Cuozzo Speed Technologies, LLC v. Lee, upholding the broadest reasonable interpretation standard for claim construction in IPR and holding that the decision to institute under 35 U.S.C. § 314 is generally not appealable.

These events are noted for context; the statistics alone do not show what caused any change.

Summary

• Inter partes review accounted for 92.7% of petitions filed.
• Petitions fell by 211 from FY2015 (1,900), a change of 11.1%.
• The institution rate fell by 0.6 percentage points from 57.5% in FY2015.
• By type, the institution rate was 57.6% for IPR petitions and 61.1% for PGR petitions and 47.3% for CBM petitions.
• Of 1,051 proceedings that ended after institution or by settlement or other termination in the year, 716 (68.1%) ended in a final written decision.

Statistics by Date in FY2016

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

• PTAB trial statistics as of February 29, 2016: 656 petitions filed in FY2016 to that date
• PTAB trial statistics as of July 31, 2016: 1,390 petitions filed in FY2016 to that date
• PTAB trial statistics as of September 30, 2016: 1,689 petitions filed in FY2016 to that date

Other Fiscal Years

FY2015 · FY2017 · 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.