March 19, 2026
A Washington, D.C., federal magistrate judge has reopened discovery into whether the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office covertly revived a now-defunct program for flagging "sensitive" patent applications for extra review.
February 12, 2026
A Washington, D.C., federal judge should ignore the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's attempt to avoid reopening discovery into whether it covertly revived a now-defunct program for flagging "sensitive" patent applications for extra review, according to two inventors who have filed a proposed class action.
May 13, 2024
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has said a proposed group of inventors should not receive class certification in a suit alleging that the office's now-defunct program for flagging "sensitive" patent applications for extra review violated the Privacy Act.
February 27, 2020
A D.C. federal judge has ruled that a class of inventors has sufficiently shown that a now-defunct U.S. Patent and Trademark Office program that flagged "sensitive" patent applications for extra review could have violated the Privacy Act, so most of the suit can survive for now.
November 19, 2019
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is doubling down on its efforts to toss a proposed class action over its secret program for flagging "sensitive" patent applications, telling a D.C. federal court there is no supposed First Amendment right to file a patent application.
September 30, 2019
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is pushing to end a proposed class action over its secret program for flagging "sensitive" patent applications, telling a D.C. federal court that the lawsuit is based on a misunderstanding of how the now-defunct program worked.