Big Banks Seek More Favors from Congress [Reader Post]

For big banks, the timing could not be worse.

The Supreme Court of the United States ruled this week in the case Stanford vs. Roche, that the historical rights of inventors should be protected – something that is threatened by a pending “Patent Reform” bill awaiting action in the House of Representatives.

Chief Justice John Roberts, writing for the court’s 7-2 majority opinion, sided with the rights of inventors. He noted that “[s]ince 1790, the patent law has operated on the premise that rights to an invention belong to the inventor.” While acknowledging that much has changed in U.S. patent law in 220 years, he emphasized that “the basic idea that inventors have the right to patent their inventions has not.”

Unfortunately for adherents to the Constitution, those “basic ideas” are now threatened. Sen. Pat Leahy (D-VT) championed the reform legislation through the Senate with the intent of harmonizing our patent system with Europe. The House and Senate bills would switch the patent system from a first-to-invent to a first-to-file process used by European and Asian countries. Unfortunately, Leahy had the support of Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and other Republicans who seemed unconcerned that the legislation would turn American patent law upside down.

Adding insult to injury, the bill contains a provision that will enrich banks at the expense of small business owners. Big banks were instrumental in getting language into the bill that would create a special court review process to invalidate valid patents. This special interest provision rewards the recipients of the largest bailout in American history.

We expect more from House Republicans but some are wondering how much more. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lama Smith (R-TX) has drunk the Kool-Aid and is pressuring the Leadership to move the bill fast.

Conservatives like Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) is challenging the bill on constitutional grounds (“The bottom line is this,” Rohrabacher said. “In our Constitution, the words make it very clear that the original inventor should be the one who receives the patent, not the global standard of whoever files first.”) Other conservatives like Allen West have drawn the line in the sand and are fighting the banker bailout provision.

The bottom line is the House needs to hold the line for conservative principles and ideals. The Senate did not and we know the president will not. To paraphrases the Movie Star Wars: “Help us Speaker Boehner, you are our only hope.”