Preserving Access to Cost Effective Drugs Act or the PACED Act
This bill prohibits patent owners from asserting tribal sovereign immunity as a defense in certain proceedings before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, including patent validity challenge proceedings before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB). The prohibition also applies to court actions and proceedings before the International Trade Commission.
Sovereign immunity for foreign states shall apply in the PTAB as it applies in federal court. The abrogation of sovereign immunity shall not apply to states or institutions of higher education (i.e., public state universities and institutions).