PROFESSIONAL INVENTOR'S ALLIANCE FIRES SHOT OVER FIRST-TO-FILE: the Professional Inventors Alliance USA has launched an aggressive lobbying campaign to ensure the recently drafted "Patent Reform Act of 2005" never makes it to the House Floor for a vote. The U.S. Senate has scheduled a Hearing for the bill on Tuesday, July 26 and the House of Representatives has scheduled a Markup on Thursday, July 28.

The big problem according to the group is the controversial provision that would replace the United State's current first-to-invent standard with the European first-to-file model. According to the group, a first-to-file provision would seriously undermine the ability of small entities to compete with large entities in terms of patent protection. Also, several legal experts questioned whether a first-inventor-to-file system would be constitutional in light of the Constitution's requirement that Congress reward "inventors."