The patent reform legislation currently winding its way through Congress would create a major backlog for the country's main patent court (U.S. Appeals Court for the Federal Circuit) and force it to adjudicate issues it is "ill-equipped" to handle, the court's chief judge said this month in a letter (.pdf) to the House Judiciary Committee.
In particular, Judge Paul Michel took issue with a section of the bill that deals with apportionment of damages. Many major tech companies have supported this part of the legislation, which would require that damages be doled out to reflect the value of an infringed patent, rather than an entire produce that relies on multiple patents.
