Changes

The act establishes that a claim construction ruling must occur prior to discovery. <ref name="patentlyoIA" /> Discovery is a process that occurs pre-trial in a civil action, a conflict between two private parties, and is defined by the federal government as any party's right to obtain relevant information for the trial. Claim construction defines exactly what a patent includes and the extent to which a patent holder can protect the subject matter. <ref name="claimconstruction" /> The provisions act also specify specifies that claim construction previously agreed upon in another court must hold when a patent claim is reviewed by the USPTOor in a new trial. <ref name="patentlyoIA" />

The act states that discovery of additional or non "core" documents may is not be approved allowed unless the party requesting them covers the costs of discovery and all parties consent to discovery. <ref name="patentlyoIA" /> By enabling courts to limit discovery, sponsors hope to reduce litigation costs and targets target patent trolls intending to settle a case quickly and early on by making use of using information revealed in discovery. <ref name="innovationactsummary" />