House and Senate committees will examine patent revamp...

House and Senate committees will examine patent revamp issues Thursday. The Senate Judiciary Committee included the oft-delayed markup of the Patent Transparency and Improvements Act (S-1720) as the only agenda item for its weekly business meeting Thursday, although the committee had not released an eagerly anticipated compromise manager’s amendment at our deadline Monday. The meeting is to begin at 9:30 a.m. in 226 Dirksen (http://1.usa.gov/1ox3Lea). An industry lobbyist expressed skepticism about the prospects for a Thursday markup given disagreements within the committee over provisions on heightened pleading and discovery requirements. Meanwhile, the House Commerce Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade plans to hold a hearing Thursday on draft legislation from Chairman Lee Terry, R-Neb., that would require entities sending pre-litigation demand letters to include additional identifying information (http://1.usa.gov/1oJVlQO). The bill would also give the FTC and state governments more power to prosecute entities that abuse demand letters (http://1.usa.gov/1lVUsBl). The hearing is to begin at 9:15 a.m. in 2123 Rayburn.