by Dennis Crouch
This is the third post tracking Section 101 reversals at the PTAB. The first, PTAB Doubles Section 101 Reversal Rate Under Director Squires (Jan. 2, 2026), reported that the Board’s reversal rate on eligibility rejections roughly doubled after John Squires was sworn in as USPTO Director in September 2025. The second, Recalibration: Seven Months of PTAB § 101 Data (Apr. 23, 2026), found the surge had cooled off its November peak and settled into what looked like a new equilibrium near 20%. Data through July 31, 2026 shows that equilibrium has not held.
The numbers. From October 2025 through March 2026, the Board reversed the examiner’s § 101 rejection outright in 21% of ex parte appeals that reached an eligibility holding. From April through July 2026 the rate is 15%. The pre-Squires baseline, running January 2024 through September 2025, was 9.4%. What we’re seeing here is a partial retreat, not a reversion.
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