In an article outlining how the change in the term of U.S. patents impacts obviousness-type double patenting, Ropes & Gray partner David Halstead argues that the validity of some issued patents may be imperiled. In the article, published by IP Review, he points out that obviousness-type double patenting (OTDP) law, originally created to curtail evergreening patent protection, has evolved into a "ticking time bomb," with the potential to cause severe economic damage. 

Halstead writes that under current OTDP law, "a patentee can obtain patents with extended term in a way that simply wasn't possible under pre-GATT law. If OTDP is meant to correct the inequity of time-wise extension of patent term that the law otherwise permits, current practice seems to miss the mark."

Halstead outlines changes prompted by the General Agreement on Tariff and Trade (GATT) that have affected patent law over the last 15 years and suggests ways in which patentees and accused infringers might prepare for OTDP issues in the future.

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