Patent applicants know to think carefully about the statements they make to the USPTO while working toward patent issuance. The reason? Statements made to the USPTO during patent prosecution have historically been fair game as evidence of claim limitations in issued patents. Now, thanks to the AIA, patent owners must be equally as careful when making statements about the claims of their issued patents when in Federal court. The reason? In a post grant proceeding, a party challenging the patent can use the patent owner’s statement against them as evidence that a claim is unpatentable.
