Among the many factors that impact the declining quality of
U.S. patents is the increasing disconnect between the technological
education patent bar members have and the fields in which patents
are being written. Based on an empirical study, the authors show
that too few patent attorneys and agents have relevant experience
in the most often patented areas today, such as computer science.
An examination of the qualification practices of the U.S. Patent
and Trademark Office ("PTO') suggests that an institutional bias
exists within the PTO that prevents software-savvy individuals
from registering with the Office. The paper concludes with
suggestions of how the identified problems can be corrected
