Chief Judge Paul Michel raises several important issues in his “state of the court” address on June 28.
- Veterans Cases On the Rise: With continued war, we can expect that veteran benefit cases will continue to rise and may potentially “swamp [the] court before year’s end. . . . it could be catastrophic. . . . Three remedies are being pursued: we are working harder, adding visiting judges, and relying on mediation.”
- Patent Reform: “Two provisions of this complex, lengthy bill are of concern. They could impose enormous burdens on the court: one making all claim construction rulings immediately appealable as of right and another that dictates that courts in every case must apportion reasonable royalty damages, and do so by one particular methodology that requires valuation of all prior art. I have informed Congress of my concerns and I know they are being considered.”
- Pro Bono Opportunities: Those interested in getting CAFC appellate experience should contact the Chief Clerk (Pam Twiford) about volunteering for MSPB appeals.
- Electronic Documents: The plan is to get e-document PACER working by this Fall. (That means I won’t have to post briefs on Patently-O any longer!).