The global smartphone patent war is setting records as Apple vies to prevent competition from Google’s Android in dozens of court cases across four continents. The United States is in a unique position during this conflict, not just because we are the largest consumer market for smartphones, but because we are the only country that allows patent holders to sue twice once in regular court and simultaneously before a federal administrative agency.
Close observers of recent patent battles may have noticed and been confused by the role of the U.S. International Trade Commission. The ITC earns its place in the patent system by virtue of Section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930, which gives the agency the authority to exclude imports it determines infringe a U.S. patent. Under Section 337, the ITC operates a specialized patent court for imports that is purely redundant, violates our trade obligations and disrupts the integrity of the U.S. patent system. Patent litigation at the ITC is a protectionist relic that needs to go.
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