Rep. Lofgren Hails Judiciary Committee Passage of Patent Reform Act of 2007

Committee Adopts Lofgren Amendment on Venue

Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-San Jose) today hailed the Judiciary Committee’s approval of the bipartisan Patent Reform Act of 2007. The bill, which Rep. Lofgren co-sponsored and has worked on for over five years, reforms existing patent law to ensure that America remains at the forefront of global research and development efforts. Also adopted by the committee was a bipartisan amendment introduced by Rep. Lofgren that combats the recent growth in opportunistic venue shopping by plaintiffs in patent litigation.

“I’m pleased that many of the most contentious issues surrounding patent reform have been addressed in a bipartisan manner,” noted Rep. Zoe Lofgren. I’d like to commend my colleagues for moving this bill forward and for accepting my amendment on venue selection in patent cases. This amendment goes a long way toward addressing the troubling growth of forum shopping in patent litigation. I will continue working with my colleagues, on both sides of the aisle, to ensure that this bill is further improved and ultimately becomes law. By balancing the need for patent rights with those of encouraging innovation, this bill will help our nation maintain its global preeminence in research and development.”

Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren is serving her seventh term in Congress representing most of the City of San Jose and Santa Clara County. She serves as Chair of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law. She also Chairs the House Administration Subcommittee on Elections and serves on the House Homeland Security Committee. Congresswoman Lofgren is Chair of the California Democratic Congressional Delegation consisting of 34 Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives from California.