Question: When is a protest considered timely? Answer: A protest is timely if (1) filed prior to the date the application was published under 37 CFR 1.211 or the date a notice of allowance was given or mailed, whichever occurs first, or (2) accompanied by written consent of the applicant and filed prior to the date a notice […]

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Question: If a published patent application is pending and it is not maintained in the IFW system, will the paper application file itself be available to the public for inspection? Answer: Published applications maintained in the IFW system are available on the USPTO Web site in the public Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. If […]

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Question: How is the effective filing date of a claimed invention determined? Answer: The effective filing date of a claimed invention is determined on a claim-by-claim basis. Chapter Details: The answer to this question can be found in chapter 2100 of the MPEP. This chapter covers Patentability. The answer is from the 9th Edition, Revision […]

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Question: How can correspondence filed via the Office electronic filing system be signed? Answer: Correspondence filed via the Office electronic filing system may be signed by a graphic representation of a handwritten signature, or a graphic representation of an S-signature. A graphic representation of a handwritten signature may be created by using a stylus pen […]

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Question: Who may the substitute statement be signed by for a juristic entity? Answer: The answer to this question can be found in chapter 600 of the MPEP. This chapter covers Parts, Form, and Content of Application. The answer is from the 9th Edition, Revision 10.2019. Depending on future changes to the MPEP, the question […]

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Question: List two reasons why an international application filed with, or forwarded to, the International Bureau would not need a foreign filing license. Answer: An international application filed with, or forwarded to, the International Bureau must have a foreign filing license unless: (1) the invention was not made in the United States; or (2) a […]

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Question: If the maintenance fee is due prior to the issuance of a reissue patent, what will paying the maintenance fee maintain? Answer: If the maintenance fee is due prior to the issuance of a reissue patent, the maintenance fee must be paid in the original patent to maintain: (1) the reissue patent in force […]

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Question: What is an example of a situation that does not define “substantial utilities”: Answer: The following are examples of situations that do not define “substantial utilities”: (A) Basic research such as studying the properties of the claimed product itself or the mechanisms in which the material is involved; (B) A method of treating an […]

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Question: Can a patent owner avoid double patenting by disclaiming the earlier patent? Answer: “[A] patent owner cannot avoid double patenting by disclaiming the earlier patent.” Chapter Details: The answer to this question can be found in chapter 800 of the MPEP. This chapter covers Restrictions in Applications Filed Under35 U.S.C. 111; Double Patenting. The […]

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Question: List two concepts and products the courts have identified as examples of laws of nature or natural phenomena. Answer: The courts have identified the following concepts and products as examples of laws of nature or natural phenomena: isolated DNA, Ass’n for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics, Inc.; a cloned farm animal such as a sheep, In […]

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