Proppant Express Investments vs. Oren Technologies (BIO Brief as Amicus Curiae)

The Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) is the world’s largest biotechnology trade association, representing over 1,000 biotechnology companies, research institutions, state biotechnology centers, and related organizations. BIO’s members devote billions of dollars annually to researching and developing biotechnological healthcare, agricultural, environmental, and industrial products that cure diseases, improve food security, create alternative energy sources, and deliver many other benefits. However, these products typically require lengthy, costly, and resource-intensive development periods. Biological medicines, for instance, save countless lives by treating previously untreatable diseases, but usually require over a decade of research and an investment of over $2 billion.

In light of these investments, BIO’s members depend upon a stable, predictable, and transparent patent system that encourages patent-holders to maintain and enforce strong patents. In particular, BIO’s members have a significant interest in ensuring that the America Invents Act’s joinder provision, 35 U.S.C. § 315(c), is interpreted as Congress intended, and that only proper parties can join an existing inter partes review (IPR) proceeding.