Article by Matt Phillips Published Comparing Reexaminations to Inter Partes Reviews
Matt Phillips has published an article entitled “Fifteen Reasons Why Patent Owners Might Prefer Their Patents Be Challenged at The PTAB Rather Than The CRU.” The article discusses the “pros” of inter partes review (IPR) compared to ex parte reexamination (EPR) from the patent owner’s perspective—a perspective Phillips knows well from having represented patent owners in a large number of both types of proceedings. The 15 reasons, in short, are the following:
The Board will not fill gaps in a petition.
Non--institution decisions can sometimes offer a quick, cheap, easy way out.
Document size limits.
Estoppel.
Stopping when the case settles.
Patent owners can (and do) win at the Board.
No IDS practice.
No extra layer of appeal for IPRs.
Highly predictable timeline.
High-quality decision makers.
Phillips claim construction.
No anonymous petitioners.
Experts tethered to reality by depositions.
Expert testimony is not ignored.
Electronic service.
The article appears in volume 25, issue 2 of the Chicago-Kent Journal of Intellectual Property, published July 6, 2026. The article is available at: https://scholarship.kentlaw.iit.edu/ckjip/vol25/iss2/7.