This chapter reviews studies of non-practicing entities (NPEs) (aka “patent trolls”) and their effect on the United States patent system. The information presented is not intended to pass judgment or persuade readers that NPEs are definitively beneficial or detrimental to the patent system

Intellectual property (IP) law regimes in the United States are designed as tradeoffs between protection for creators (inventors, authors, and the like), and the interests of the consuming public.