Patent

Overview of Intellectual Property Litigation

In the United States, there are many forums in which to resolve intellectual property disputes, including:

• Federal Court
• International Trade Commission
• US Patent & Trademark Office
• Arbitration

Each forum has certain advantages and disadvantages.  Federal district court litigation  is complex and often very expensive, but offers certainty of procedural safeguards and remedies of injunctions and monetary awards.  Administrative proceedings for Intellectual Property Enforcement Actions at the International Trade Commission (ITC) are fast and usually have lower costs as compared to court litigation, but ITC enforcement  remedies are limited to injunctions and exclusion orders.  The PTO offers a low cost means of resolving some intellectual property disputes, however, PTO proceedings can be slow and can result in further litigation.  Binding arbitration can be relatively fast and inexpensive, however, procedural safeguards are limited and the losing party may have limited appeal rights from an arbitrator's decision.  Thus, the ideal choice for resolving a dispute over intellectual property depends on the facts and circumstances of each case.