Restoring America’s Leadership in Innovation Act of 2025

This bill would return the U.S. patent system to a first-to-invent standard and abolish several administrative patent challenge proceedings. It proposes to broaden patent-eligible subject matter and establishes a legal presumption that patent infringement causes irreparable harm, making it easier for patent owners to obtain permanent injunctions. Additionally, the legislation would limit the types of publications considered prior art and authorize the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to retain and spend all fees it collects.

This bill affects individual inventors by reverting the patent system to a first-to-invent standard and limiting the types of publications considered prior art. Patent owners who prevail in infringement cases are affected by a new legal presumption that simplifies the process for securing permanent injunctions against infringers. Additionally, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is affected through the abolition of its administrative challenge body and the authorization to retain and spend all collected fees.

• Restoration of the first-to-invent patent system. The bill transitions the U.S. patent system from a first-to-file system back to a first-to-invent system, where the individual who first conceives of an invention is entitled to the patent.
• Abolishment of administrative patent challenge proceedings. The legislation eliminates several types of administrative patent challenge proceedings and dissolves the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office body responsible for deciding those cases.
• Expansion of patent-eligible subject matter. The bill relaxes eligibility standards, stating that the only ineligible inventions are those existing in nature independent of human activity or those existing solely within the human mind.
• Presumption of irreparable harm in infringement cases. The bill establishes a legal presumption that further infringement causes irreparable harm to a patent owner who wins a court case, making it easier to secure permanent injunctions against infringers.
• Limitations on prior art and patentability criteria. The bill restricts the types of publications that can be considered prior art when determining if an invention is anticipated or obvious.
• Retention of collected fees by the USPTO. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is authorized to keep and spend all fees it collects rather than having them diverted.

This bill substantively revises U.S. patent law by reverting the system from a first-to-file to a first-to-invent standard and abolishing existing administrative patent challenge proceedings and the associated Patent Trial and Appeal Board. It also modifies current legal standards regarding patent-eligible subject matter, the criteria for permanent injunctions, and the treatment of prior art, while changing the funding structure for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

The bill seeks to restore the United States patent system to a first-to-invent standard and expand patent-eligible subject matter. It aims to strengthen patent holder protections by abolishing certain administrative challenge proceedings and establishing a legal presumption of irreparable harm to assist prevailing patent owners in securing permanent injunctions.