By Sean Murray ( October 24, 2017, 1:24 PM EDT) -- The running of the bulls in Pamplona is chaotic and frenetic, with chance often dictating who emerges unscathed and who is trampled or gored. A similar mad scramble occurs in many patent disputes today, with the defendant racing to invalidate the patent in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office before the plaintiff can obtain final judgment in court. Who wins the race often depends on the vagaries of patent office bureaucracy or the court's discretionary decision whether to stay the case during inter partes review. This process is unseemly in a liberal democracy. It should be reformed so that patent disputes are resolved consistently and according to the rule of law. In the meantime, however, patent owners and accused infringers should each employ common-sense strategies to maximize their odds of winning the IPR race....