> says that the USPTO rejects some patents 'on appeal'. I.e. someone 
> (lawyers) makes a lot of money on it. Would it not be more 
> beneficial if 
> they would reject them outright instead of granting them ? 

IMHO you are completely right, but the world is moving in the opposite
direction. Even my own country (Netherlands), which used to have one of
the toughest pre-patent investigation regimes, has moved to a just-file
approach, leaving the challenging to the courts. Two thing that hake
this move unavoidable is the gradual lowering of the 'innovation level'
and the sheer amount of 'existing knowledge' which makes it almost
impossible for a patent officer to asses whether a patent is realy new.

Wouter van Ooijen

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Van Ooijen Technische Informatica: www.voti.nl
consultancy, development, PICmicro products
docent Hogeschool van Utrecht: www.voti.nl/hvu
 

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