Consolidated Trial Practice Guide (December 2025, web)

The consolidated Trial Practice Guide folds the August 2012 Practice Guide and the August 2018 and July 2019 updates into one statement of standard Board practice in AIA trials (IPR, PGR and derivation). It states that the Board will institute on all challenged claims and grounds or on none, applies the district-court (Phillips) claim construction standard, requires a ranking and explanation when a petitioner files more than one petition on a patent, and sets out the discretionary-denial, motion to amend, reply and sur-reply, joinder and remand practices. The December 12, 2025 edition deleted sections II.B.4 and II.D.1.c and updated section II.M and Appendix A-1. Petitioners must justify any second petition on the same patent, address claim construction and 35 U.S.C. § 112(f) in the petition, and keep replies within the scope of the petition. Patent owners learn that testimony may accompany the preliminary response, that they may waive that response or disclaim claims, that they do not bear the burden of persuasion on substitute claims under Aqua Products, and that issues not renewed in the patent owner response may be treated as waived. The guide says it rests on the AIA, including 35 U.S.C. §§ 314, 316(b), 324, 325(d) and 326(b), and on 37 C.F.R. part 42. It also relies on decisions it names, including SAS Institute, General Plastic, Becton Dickinson, NHK Spring, Valve, Lectrosonics, Amazon v. Uniloc, Proppant Express and Garmin. WHAT IT DOES: Explains AIA trial practice. The Board institutes on all challenged claims and grounds or on none. It describes the real party-in-interest and privity analysis, the Garmin factors for additional discovery, and claim construction under the district-court standard (Phillips). Petitioners filing two or more petitions on one patent must rank them and explain the differences, in a separate paper of no more than 5 pages if not in the petitions. The guide applies the General Plastic and Becton Dickinson factors and covers motions to amend, reply and sur-reply limits, motions to strike, joinder and remand procedure. WHO AND WHEN: Applies to IPR, PGR and derivation proceedings before the Board. The CBM program expired on September 16, 2020, and references to it were removed. The page states that on December 12, 2025, sections II.B.4 and II.D.1.c were deleted and section II.M and Appendix A-1 were updated. The claim construction rule applies to petitions filed on or after November 13, 2018. After publication of the 2019 guide, petitioners are expected to justify multiple petitions with their petitions. KEY QUOTE: "The Board will not institute on fewer than all claims or all challenges in a petition." (General Overview of Proceedings) EARLIER GUIDANCE AFFECTED: It incorporates the August 2012 Practice Guide and the updates of August 2018 and July 2019 into one document. The archive lists the August 2012, August 2018, July 2019 and November 2019 versions and an October 2025 webpage version. The page says sections II.B.4 and II.D.1.c were deleted on December 12, 2025, but the text supplied does not say what they contained. PRACTICE TIP: If you file more than one petition on the same patent, rank them and explain the material differences and why the Board should institute more than one, in the petitions or in a separate paper of no more than 5 pages filed with them. Patent owners should respond in the preliminary response and offer any stipulations needed to show the differences are not material.