Theoretical Patent Thickets v. Data-Driven Patent Policy: Are Changes Necessary at the PTO & FDA?

An increasingly vocal group of critics complain that life-sciences patents are holding up legitimate competition. These complaints decry an alleged proliferation of patents—called “thickets”—that competitors struggle to pierce. These narratives have increasingly trickled into the mainstream, and have even become an apparent motivation for proposed alterations to patent policy at the USPTO.

These narratives are false and this session will present data refuting core claims made by proponents of the “thicket” theory, and show that that life-sciences patents are not, in fact, holding up competition—if anything, they are insufficiently protective. Panelists will offer a multi-part empirical analysis, sharing three key insights as well as analytical underpinnings explaining the data.