April [General] Newsletter

The 6th Japan-ASEAN Patent Experts Meeting

On March 10, the 6th Japan-ASEAN Patent Experts Meeting, organized by the Japan Patent Office (JPO) and the Intellectual Property Offices of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries, was held in Singapore for the first time in person. As with last year's meeting, the themes were "Patent Examination Practices in the Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology Fields" and "Quality Control of Patent Examination."

Regarding "Patent Examination Practices in the Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology Fields," a report was presented on the research project conducted by the Economic Research Institute for East Asia and ASEAN (ERIA) in cooperation with the JPO and various ASEAN countries. The report included details on the examination standards of the intellectual property offices of each ASEAN country and the decisions made by each office in hypothetical cases.

Regarding "Quality Control of Patent Examination," the JPO's quality control officer introduced quality control methods in Japan, and many questions were asked by the participants. In addition, intellectual property offices from various ASEAN countries shared their verification items and current status in quality control, and a lively discussion took place, deepening mutual understanding.

The JPO stated that it will continue to encourage ASEAN countries to improve their patent examination procedures and quality control through these meetings, and will cooperate to further enhance the patent systems of each ASEAN country.

The USPTO and the Department of Justice jointly submitted a statement of opinion regarding patent holders' injunctive relief.

On February 1, the USPTO announced that it had jointly submitted a statement of opinion (A) to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas with the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division regarding the importance of granting injunctions based on patent rights.

The joint statement of opinion submitted this time concerns a patent infringement lawsuit filed in the same district court. In that case, a jury found willful infringement and awarded $445.5 million in damages for past infringements. The plaintiffs are seeking a permanent injunction against the defendant to prevent future infringements.

In their written statement, the USPTO and DOJ stated that they had no intention of supporting either party in the lawsuit and were not prejudicing the outcome of the judiciary, but argued that excessively restricting injunctive relief for patent infringement could be detrimental to the purpose of patent law, which is to promote innovation.

Furthermore, while it is difficult to accurately assess the value of a patent and determine the amount of damages caused by infringement, it is explained that in cases of patent infringement, there may be damages that cannot be remedied by monetary compensation alone, and this is true even when the patent holder is a non-performing entity (NPE).

Next-generation search tool for examiners developed by the European Patent Office (EPO)

The next-generation tool, ANSERA-based SEARCH, was developed in cooperation with the European Patent Office (EPO) and the patent offices of its member states. This tool now provides more than 2,500 examiners in patent offices worldwide with a future-proof search solution to address increasingly complex prior art, allowing the old tool, EPOQUE Net, to be discontinued.

The successful implementation of ANSERA-based SEARCH in over 40 national patent offices marks a significant milestone in the EPO's commitment to pursuing excellence through the use of digital tools, as outlined in its Strategic Plan 2028. This search solution is closely based on the highly sophisticated ANSERA tools used by the EPO itself.

ANSERA-based SEARCH (AbS) is a highly advanced solution that enables examiners in various countries to perform fast, efficient, and detailed searches across an extremely extensive database encompassing patent and non-patent literature collections from around the world. Compared to older tools, AbS supports a more sophisticated workflow, specifically by managing vast amounts of literature, intelligently ranking search results, providing search capabilities similar to semantic search, and enabling examiners to organize prior art clearly and structurally.

A large number of patent applications are expected to be filed in Japan in December 2025.

The number of patent applications in December 2025 reached 82,188, a 168.9% increase (approximately 2.7 times) compared to the same month of the previous year. This was revealed in the "Preliminary Statistics Report on Patent Applications, etc. (December 2025)" released by the Japan Patent Office on February 26, 2026. No similar level of applications has been confirmed in the past 10 years, resulting in a significant increase in the total number of applications for 2025. The total number of patent applications for 2025 is projected to be 358,313, an increase of more than 50,000 from 2024. The number of applications exceeding 350,000 in a single year will be the first time since 2008.

Typically, the number of monthly patent applications in Japan fluctuates between 20,000 and 30,000, with a slight concentration in March (the end of the fiscal year) and December (the end of the year). Over the past five years, the number of applications in December has generally remained around 30,000, with 30,563 in December 2024. The 82,188 applications in December 2025 represent an increase of more than 50,000 compared to the usual number of applications in December, indicating an unprecedented and exceptionally large number of applications.

While mass patent applications using AI tools and mass applications by specific companies have been making headlines, the true nature of the approximately 50,000 increased applications remains speculative at this point. Since the application fee for each patent is 14,000 yen, 50,000 applications would amount to 700 million yen.

USPTO to make sending patent certificate copies optional.

On February 6, the USPTO announced, ahead of its scheduled public notice on March 17, that it would change the system for sending courtesy ceremonial copies of patent certificates (eGrants), which had previously been automatically issued and sent to all applicants upon issuance, to an optional system (Opt-In) where copies would only be sent to those who request them.

The USPTO digitized the issuance of patent certificates in April 100 and has issued more than one million electronic patent certificates (eGrants) to date. Until now, copies of patent certificates were sent to all applicants as a ceremonial gesture, retaining the official seal and signature of the USPTO Director General, which were remnants of the paper-based certificate. Now, with the aim of improving efficiency and reducing costs, copies of patent certificates will only be sent to those who request them. The USPTO explains that this transition to an opt-in system is expected to reduce printing and mailing costs, resulting in cost savings of approximately $250 million per year.

According to the USPTO, the automatic sending of copies of patent certificates will be discontinued for patents for which patent issuance fees were paid on or after March 9th of this year.

However, it is still possible to receive one copy free of charge by requesting it when paying the patent issuance fee. Additionally, as a temporary measure, even if you did not request it when paying the patent issuance fee, you can still receive a copy of the patent certificate by applying via email by June 1th, along with the relevant patent number.

Newsletter translated into English

The 6th Japan-ASEAN Patent Experts Meeting

On March 10, 2026, the 6th Japan-ASEAN Patent Experts Meeting, involving the Japan Patent Office (JPO) and the intellectual property offices of ASEAN member states, was held in person in Singapore for the first time. As in the previous year, the themes addressed at this meeting were “Patent Examination Practices in the Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology Fields” and “Quality Management in Patent Examination”.

With regard to “Patent Examination Practices in the Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology Fields”, a report was presented on a research project conducted by the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA) in cooperation with the JPO and the ASEAN states. The report covered the contents of examination guidelines of the IP offices of ASEAN member states and their respective determinations, etc. in hypothetical cases.

With regard to “Quality Management in Patent Examination”, a representative in charge of quality management at the JPO introduced the quality management methods used in Japan, and numerous questions were raised by participants. In addition, the IP offices of ASEAN member states shared their current practices and check items in quality management, and active discussions were held, deepening mutual understanding.

The JPO stated that it will continue, through these meetings, to encourage improvements in patent examination operations and the enhancement of quality management in ASEAN member states, and will further cooperation promote to further strengthen the patent systems of ASEAN member states.

USPTO and Department of Justice Jointly Submit Statement on Injunctive Relief for Patent Holders

On February 27, 2026, the USPTO announced that it had submitted, jointly with the Antitrust Division of the US Department of Justice (DOJ), a statement to the US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas regarding the importance of granting injunctive relief based on patent rights.

This joint statement was in relation to a patent infringement lawsuit pending before the court. In this case, a jury found willful infringement and awarded damages of 445.5 million dollars for past infringing acts. The defendant is seeking a permanent injunction against the defendant for future infringing acts as well.

In the statement, the USPTO and DOJ explained that they do not intend to support either party in this litigation and do not seek to prejudge the court's decision, but argued that unduly restricting injunctive relief for patent infringement could hinder the promotion of innovation, which is the purpose of patent law.

They also noted that it is difficult to accurately assess the value of patents and calculate damages caused by infringement, and that there may be cases where monetary damages alone are insufficient to remedy the harm caused by patent infringement. This would apply equally even when the patent holder is a non-practicing entity (NPE).

Next-generation Search Tool for Examiners Developed by the European Patent Office (EPO)

A next-generation tool, ANSERA-based SEARCH, has been developed through cooperation between the European Patent Office (EPO) and the patent offices of EPO member states. This tool is currently providing more than 2,500 examiners at patent offices around the world with a future-proof search solution to address increasingly complex prior art, making it possible to discontinue the use of the former tool, EPOQUE Net.

The successful deployment of ANSERA-based SEARCH to more than 40 patent offices marks an important milestone in the EPO's commitment under Strategic Plan 2028 to pursue excellence through the use of digital tools. This search solution is closely based on the highly advanced ANSERA tool used by the EPO itself.

ANSERA-based SEARCH (AbS) is a highly solution that enables examiners in various countries to perform fast,, and detailed searches across extremely extensive databases covering patent literature worldwide as well as unique and extensive collections of non-patent literature. Compared to previous tools, AbS supports a more sophisticated workflow. In other words, it allows management of vast amounts of documents, intelligent ranking of search results, and provision of search functions similar to semantic search, and enables examiners to prior organize art clearly and structurally.

Massive Number of Patent Applications Filed in Japan in December 2025

The number of patent applications filed in December 2025 reached 82,188, representing a 168.9% increase (approximately 2.7 times) compared to the same month of the previous year. This was revealed in the “Preliminary Statistics on Patent Applications, etc. (December 2025)” published by the Japan Patent Office on February 26, 2026. Looking back over the past 10 years, no comparable level of filings has been observed, and this result boosted the total number of applications for 2025. The total number of patent applications for 2025 was 358,313, an increase of more than 50,000 from 2024. This was the first time the annual number of applications had exceeded 350,000 since 2008.

Normally, the monthly number of patent applications in Japan is in the range of 20,000 to 30,000, with a tendency for some concentration at the end of the fiscal year in March and at the end of the calendar year in December. Over the past five years, the number of applications in December has generally been around 30,000, and in December 2024 it was 30,563. The 82,188 applications in December 2025 represents an increase of more than 50,000 compared to a typical December, indicating an unprecedented and exceptionally large amount of filings.

While the use of AI tools for mass filings and large-scale filings by specific companies has been discussed, the true nature of the approximately 50,000 additional applications remains speculative at this stage. The filing fee for a patent application is 14,000 yen per application, meaning that 50,000 applications would amount to 700 million yen.

USPTO Shifts to Opt-in System for Sending Copies of Patent Certificates

On February 6, 2026, the USPTO announced, ahead of a notice scheduled for March 17, 2026, that it will change the system for sending courtesy ceremonial copies of patent certificates, which had previously been automatically issued and sent for all cases upon issuance of electronic patent certificates (eGrant), to an opt-in system under which they will be sent only to those who request them.

Since April 2023, the USPTO has digitized the issuance of patent certificates and has issued more than one million electronic patent certificates (eGrant). Courtesy ceremonial copies elements of the traditional paper patent certificates, such as the seal and the signature of the USPTO Director, and have been sent for all cases until now. With the aim of improving efficiency and reducing costs, these copies will now be sent only to those who request them. The USPTO explains that this shift to an opt-in system is expected to reduce printing and mailing costs, resulting in annual savings of approximately 2.5 million dollars.

According to the USPTO, automatic sending of courtesy ceremonial copies will be discontinued for patents for which the issue fee is paid on or after March 9 of this year.

However, by making a request at the time of payment of the issue fee, it will still be possible to receive one copy free of charge. In addition, as a temporary measure, even if the request was not made at the time of payment of the issue fee, it will still be possible to receive a copy by applying by June 9, 2026 via email indicating the relevant patent number.