NPE Filings Remain Stable as Operating Company Litigation Dips
January 18, 2023
Despite notable events impacting NPE behavior in West Texas and Delaware, 2022 was practically a repeat of 2021 in terms of litigation volume—continuing the long-run trend under which such plaintiffs have named around 2,200 defendants per year since 2019. Long-term NPE filing levels are down from a 2011 peak and up from a 2018 nadir, but they have generally been stable since. Following that low point in 2018, NPE litigation has increased by 40-45%, though half of that increase has come from plaintiffs associated with prolific monetization firm IP Edge LLC.
In contrast, operating company patent litigation—as previously reported by RPX—has remained on a gentle decline over the last 15 years, from approximately 2,000 defendants per year in 2005-2008 to around 1,000 for each of the past three years.
See RPX’s fourth-quarter review for more on why NPE litigation held steady last year, notwithstanding headwinds in the nation’s top two patent venues—and for further analysis on other key patent litigation trends in both 2022 and Q4.
