A new Obama administration initiative designed to make frivolouspatent protection lawsuits more difficult to bring may end upprotecting credit unions.

Although credit unions have not been the leading victims of thelitigation, some have been caught up in some cases which have alleged that their ATMs haveviolated patents. Some credit unions have settled the suitswith fees to the patent holder while others have successfully, sofar, defended their positions in court.

The administration's initiative includes seven legislativerecommendations and five executive branch policies intended to helpmake frivolous patent litigation more difficult to bring.

For example, one of the seven legislative changes would makecomplainants in patent cases disclose who else has an interest inthe case so defendants can more easily discern if they are involvedin one of these lawsuits.

One of the five administrative changes, meanwhile, would protectend users, such as credit unions, from alleged violations ofpatents just because their ATMs are performing as designed andmanufactured.

“Patent trolls are increasingly targeting Main Street retailers,consumers and other end users of products containing patentedtechnology — for instance, for using point-of-sale software or aparticular business method,” the White House said in itsannouncement.

“End users should not be subject to lawsuits for simply using aproduct as intended, and need an easier way to know their rightsbefore entering into costly litigation or settlement.”