Dive summary:

• Patent trolls are already considered an abomination in the electronics industry, and some of them seem to have found a target among contractors.
• The trolls--companies that buy up patents just so they can sue for infringement--are an annoyance at best and a serious expense at worst, and some have sent letters to contractors claiming that scanning documents and emailing them violates patents they own.
• Associated General Contractors (AGC) say some members are pushing back and the trolls have gone away, but AGC advises any contractor who hears from one of these companies to never concede that the patents are valid, that the troll has accurately described them and that the contractor has infringed on them, whatever their scope may be.

From the article:

To the best of our knowledge, these patent trolls have yet to make good on any of their threats to take legal action against AGC members.  ...