April 29, 2010 - Patrick Leahy (D-VT), the Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman, came to an agreement with the committee's ranking Republican, Jeff Sessions (R-AL), on a compromise bill - making passage of the Patent Reform Act of 2009 likely this year.

The Senate bill, S.515, increases the "gatekeeping" role of judges in determining whether claims of damages are well-founded. Other major changes included in the bill are a change from a first-to-invent to a first-to-file system, and the creation of a system of post-grant review to determine patent validity.

This IPFrontline article explains more about the Patent Reform Act of 2009, and this IPWatchdog.com blog entry explains the political process behind the compromise and why the bill is expected to pass this year.