Post-Grant Opposition System: The First Two Years

Summary
Almost two years have passed since the post-grant opposition system was reinstated on April 1, 2015, after a 12-year hiatus since 2003. The re-instatement of the opposition system was welcomed since it was expected to provide an easier and more effective means to nullify a third party’s patent than the conventional invalidation trial system. However, statistics of the first two years (2015 and 2016) indicate that the actual system is somewhat different from what we expected. This article summarizes the opposition system in comparison with the invalidation trial system, and reviews the current situations thereof as a guidance in determining which of these procedures should be chosen for specific cases.