PTAB Statistics: Fiscal Year 2020

This page reports Patent Trial and Appeal Board trial activity in fiscal year 2020, which ran from October 1, 2019 to September 30, 2020. 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	1,429	64	20	0	1,513
Institution decisions: instituted	595	15	3	0	613
Institution decisions: denied	475	26	3	2	506
Institution rate (by petition)	55.6%	36.6%	50.0%	0.0%	54.8%
Final written decisions	468	25	4	0	497

Terminations without a final written decision	Count
Settlements	311
Settled before institution	160
Settled after institution	151
Adverse judgment	0
Dismissed	6
Other terminations	76

Figures by Trial Type in Detail

Inter Partes Review (IPR)

In FY2020, 1,429 IPR petitions were filed (94.4% of all AIA petitions). Of 1,070 IPR institution decisions, 595 instituted a trial and 475 denied institution, a rate of 55.6%. The Board issued 468 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 FY2020, 64 PGR petitions were filed (4.2% of all AIA petitions). Of 41 PGR institution decisions, 15 instituted a trial and 26 denied institution, a rate of 36.6%. The Board issued 25 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 FY2020, 20 CBM petitions were filed (1.3% of all AIA petitions). Of 6 CBM institution decisions, 3 instituted a trial and 3 denied institution, a rate of 50.0%. The Board issued 4 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 FY2020, 0 DER petitions were filed (0.0% of all AIA petitions). Of 2 DER institution decisions, 0 instituted a trial and 2 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, 497 ended in a final written decision under 35 U.S.C. § 318, 311 in settlement under 35 U.S.C. § 317 (160 before institution and 151 after), 0 in adverse judgment, 6 by dismissal and 76 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 April 20, 2020, the Supreme Court decided Thryv, Inc. v. Click-to-Call Technologies, LP, holding that the Board’s application of the one-year time bar of 35 U.S.C. § 315(b) is not appealable. In May 2020 the Board designated Apple Inc. v. Fintiv, Inc. precedential, setting out factors for discretionary denial where parallel litigation is pending.

The transitional program for covered business method review ended for petitions filed on or after September 16, 2020; see CBM review.

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

Summary

• Inter partes review accounted for 94.4% of petitions filed.
• Petitions rose by 48 from FY2019 (1,465), a change of 3.3%.
• The institution rate fell by 4.7 percentage points from 59.5% in FY2019.
• By type, the institution rate was 55.6% for IPR petitions and 36.6% for PGR petitions and 50.0% for CBM petitions.
• Of 890 proceedings that ended after institution or by settlement or other termination in the year, 497 (55.8%) ended in a final written decision.

Other Fiscal Years

FY2019 · FY2021 · 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.