More than 20 percent of Illinois REALTORS® have responded to the national Call for Action regarding patent trolls, and the campaign continues.

The NAR’s call for action began more than three weeks ago, asking members write to federal elected officials to tell them this problem must be addressed.

The Decatur Association of REALTORS® still leads with more than 41 percent of its members sending emails to federal lawmakers. Overall, 20.27 percent of IAR’s members have responded to the Call for Action.

The Call for Action targets so-called patent trolls, companies or individuals who buy up or claim patents that can be broadly applied to basic technology. The patent trolls often send demand letters claiming their rights have been violated for things as simple as fax machines and drop-down menus on a website.

The National Association of REALTORS® issued the call because patent trolls can have a huge impact on small businesses. Faced with fighting a lengthy legal fight, many companies choose to pay the patent trolls’ demands rather than risk an expensive court battle.

If you haven’t responded to the Call for Action yet, please make your voice heard now.