80 FR 34145 - Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
United States Patent and Trademark Office Federal Register Volume 80, Issue 114 (June 15, 2015)
United States Patent and Trademark Office
Federal Register Volume 80, Issue 114 (June 15, 2015)
| Page Range | 34145-34147 | |
| FR Document | 2015-14754 |
[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 114 (Monday, June 15, 2015)] [Notices] [Pages 34145-34147] From the Federal Register Online [www.thefederalregister.org] [FR Doc No: 2015-14754] ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE United States Patent and Trademark Office [Docket No.: PTO-P-2015-0030] Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot AGENCY: United States Patent and Trademark Office, Commerce. ACTION: Notice. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY: The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has a procedure under which an application will be advanced out of turn (accorded special status) for examination if the applicant files a petition to make special with the appropriate showing. The USPTO is providing a temporary basis (the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot) under which an appellant may have an ex parte appeal to the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (Board) accorded special status if the appellant withdraws the appeal in another application in which an ex parte appeal is also pending before the Board. The Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot will allow appellants having multiple ex parte appeals currently pending before the Board to have greater control over the priority with which their appeals are decided and reduce the backlog of appeals pending before the Board. DATES: Effective Date: June 19, 2015. Duration: The Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot is being adopted on a temporary basis and will run until two thousand (2,000) appeals have been accorded special status under the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot, or until June 20, 2016, whichever occurs earlier. The USPTO may extend the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot (with or without modification) on either a temporary or permanent basis, or may discontinue the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot after June 20, 2016, depending upon the results of the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Steven Bartlett, Patent Trial and Appeal Board, by telephone at 571-272-9797, or by electronic mail message at expeditedpatentappealspilot@uspto.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Appeals to the Board are normally taken up for decision by the Board in the order in which they are docketed. The USPTO [[Page 34146]] has a preexisting procedure under which an application will be advanced out of turn (accorded special status) if the applicant files a petition to make special with the appropriate showing. See 37 CFR 1.102 and MPEP Sec. 708.02. The USPTO is adopting, on a temporary basis, the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot, under which an appellant may have an ex parte appeal to the Board in an application accorded special status if the appellant withdraws the appeal in another application or ex parte reexamination with an ex parte appeal also pending before the Board. The Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot will permit an appellant having multiple appeals pending before the Board to accelerate the Board decision on an appeal involving an invention of greater importance to the appellant, possibly hastening the pace at which the invention is patented and products or services embodying the patent are brought to the marketplace, and thus spurring follow-on innovation, economic growth, and job creation, by foregoing another pending appeal in which the underlying invention is no longer a business pursuit or priority to the appellant. The USPTO will accord special status to an appeal pending before the Board under the following conditions: (1) A certification and petition under 37 CFR 41.3 must be filed by the USPTO's electronic filing system (EFS-Web) in the application involved in the ex parte appeal for which special status is sought (``appeal to be made special''), identifying that application and appeal by application and appeal number, respectively. In addition, the appeal to be made special must be an appeal for which a docketing notice was mailed no later than June 19, 2015. Moreover, there must be no request for an oral hearing, or any request for an oral hearing must be withdrawn, for the appeal to be made special, and the appellant must agree not to request a refund of any oral hearing fees paid with respect to the appeal to be made special. (2) The petition under 37 CFR 41.3 must include a request to withdraw the appeal in another application or ex parte reexamination for which a docketing notice was mailed no later than June 19, 2015 (``appeal to be withdrawn''), identifying that application or ex parte reexamination and appeal by application or reexamination control number and appeal number, respectively. The petition under 37 CFR 41.3 must be filed before the appeal to be withdrawn has been taken up for decision. The appellant also must agree not to request a refund of any appeal fees, including oral hearing fees, paid with respect to the appeal to be withdrawn. (3) The application involved in the appeal to be made special and the application or patent under reexamination involved in the appeal to be withdrawn must be either owned by the same party as of June 19, 2015, or name at least one inventor in common. (4) The petition under 37 CFR 41.3 must be signed by a registered practitioner who has a power of attorney under 37 CFR 1.32, or has authority to act under 37 CFR 1.34, for the application involved in the appeal to be made special and for the application or patent under reexamination involved in the appeal to be withdrawn. The USPTO has created a form-fillable Portable Document Format (PDF) ``Petition to Make Special--Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot'' (Form PTO/SB/438) for use in filing a certification and petition under 37 CFR 41.3 under the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot. Form PTO/SB/438 is available on the USPTO's Internet Web site on the micro site for USPTO patent-related forms (http://www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms). Form PTO/SB/438 does not collect ``information'' within the meaning of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). See 5 CFR 1320.3(h). Therefore, this notice does not involve information collection requirements which are subject to review by OMB. No petition fee is required. The $400.00 fee for a petition under 37 CFR 41.3 is hereby sua sponte waived for any petition to make an appeal special under the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot. The withdrawal of an appeal in an application or ex parte reexamination may not form the basis for more than one petition to make special under the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot, including a petition to make special for a subsequent appeal in the application for which a petition to make an appeal special was granted, or any continuing application of the application for which a petition to make an appeal special was granted. MPEP Sec. 1203 provides that an application made special and advanced out of turn for examination will continue to be special throughout its entire course of prosecution in the Office, including appeal, if any, to the Board. An appeal that is accorded special status for decision on an appeal to the Board under the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot will be advanced similarly out of turn for a decision on the appeal by the Board. The difference between the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot and an application made special under 37 CFR 1.102 and MPEP Sec. 708.02 is that an application in which an appeal is accorded special status for decision on an appeal to the Board under the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot will not have a special status under CFR 1.102 and MPEP Sec. 708.02 after the decision on the appeal. The goal for handling an application in which a petition to make an appeal special under the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot is filed is as follows: (1) Rendering a decision on the petition to make the appeal special no later than two (2) months from the filing date of the petition; and (2) rendering a decision on the appeal no later than four (4) months from the date a petition to make an appeal special under the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot is granted. The current pendency of decided appeals in applications, for those appeals decided this fiscal year, ranges between an average of 24.7 months for appeals from applications assigned to Technology Center 1700 and an average of 32.5 months for appeals from applications assigned to Technology Center 1600, and is shown for each Technology Center in the following table: ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Average months from docketing Technology Center notice to board decision ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1600................................................. 32.5 1700................................................. 24.7 2100................................................. 32.0 2400................................................. 32.0 2600................................................. 31.7 2800................................................. 26.9 2900................................................. 26.1 3600................................................. 31.7 3700................................................. 29.9 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Ex parte reexamination proceedings, including any appeal to the Board, are conducted with special dispatch within the USPTO. See 35 U.S.C. 305. The current average pendency of appeals in ex parte reexaminations, for those appeals decided this fiscal year, is 5.7 months. The USPTO is not making the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot applicable to appeals in ex parte reexaminations as these appeals already are handled with special dispatch, and the petition evaluation process would only delay the Board decision in an appeal in an ex parte reexamination. The process for handling an application in which an appeal is withdrawn is set forth in MPEP Sec. 1215. Appellants should specifically note that an application having no allowed claims becomes abandoned upon withdrawal of an appeal, and that claims indicated as [[Page 34147]] allowable but for their dependency from rejected claims are not considered allowed claims but are treated as rejected claims. See MPEP Sec. 1215.01. The filing of a request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114 in an application on appeal to the Board is treated as a request to withdraw the appeal and to reopen prosecution of the application before the examiner. See 37 CFR 1.114(d). A request for continued examination may be filed with a petition under 37 CFR 41.3, and the withdrawal of an appeal in that application resulting from the filing of such a request for continued examination may form the basis for a petition to make special based upon the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot. The withdrawal of an appeal resulting from the filing of a request for continued examination prior to the filing of a petition under 37 CFR 41.3, however, may not form the basis for a petition to make special based upon the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot. As discussed previously, an application having no allowed claims becomes abandoned upon withdrawal of an appeal. Any request for continued examination, however, must be filed prior to the abandonment of the application. See 37 CFR 1.114(a)(2). Thus, an appellant wishing to file a request for continued examination in an application in which there is an appeal to be withdrawn under the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot must, if there are no allowed claims, file the request for continued examination with the petition under 37 CFR 41.3 to ensure that the request for continued examination is filed prior to the abandonment of the application that will result from the dismissal of the appeal. A request for continued examination must include a submission. See 37 CFR 1.114(a) and (c). An appeal brief, or a reply brief, or related papers, are not considered a submission under 37 CFR 1.114. See 37 CFR 1.114(c). The submission, however, may consist of the arguments in a previously filed appeal brief or reply brief, or may simply consist of a statement that incorporates by reference the arguments in a previously filed appeal brief or reply brief. See MPEP Sec. 706.07(h). The Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot is being adopted on a temporary basis until two thousand (2,000) appeals have been accorded special status under the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot, or until June 20, 2016, whichever occurs earlier. The USPTO may extend the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot (with or without modification) on either a temporary or permanent basis, or may discontinue the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot after June 20, 2016, depending upon the results of the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot. Additional information concerning the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot, including statistical information concerning the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot and pendency of appeals before the Board, can found on the USPTO Internet Web site at: https://www-cms.uspto.gov/patents-application-process/patent-trial-and-appeal-board/expedited-patent-appeal-pilot. Dated: June 10, 2015. Michelle K. Lee, Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office. [FR Doc. 2015-14754 Filed 6-12-15; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 3510-16-P
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Councils, Commissions, and state and ADDRESSES: Dated: June 10, 2015.
federal agencies. Meeting address: The meeting will be Tracey L. Thompson,
The items of discussion in the pre held at the Four Points by Sheraton Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable
Data Workshop webinar are as follows: (formerly Sheraton Colonial), 1 Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.
1. Progress update from SEDAR 41 [FR Doc. 2015–14628 Filed 6–12–15; 8:45 am]
Audubon Road, Wakefield, MA 01880;
working groups. BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
2. Participants will present summary telephone: (781) 245–9300; fax: (781)
data and discuss data needs and 245–0842.
treatments as necessary to prepare for Council address: New England DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
the SEDAR 41 Data Workshop II. Fishery Management Council, 50 Water
Although non-emergency issues not Street, Mill 2, Newburyport, MA 01950. United States Patent and Trademark
contained in this agenda may come Office
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
before this group for discussion, those [Docket No.: PTO–P–2015–0030]
issues may not be the subject of formal Thomas A. Nies, Executive Director,
action during this meeting. Action will New England Fishery Management
Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot
be restricted to those issues specifically Council; telephone: (978) 465–0492.
identified in this notice and any issues SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The AGENCY: United States Patent and
arising after publication of this notice Trademark Office, Commerce.
committees plan to review and discuss
that require emergency action under updated information and analyses for ACTION: Notice.
section 305(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens the draft Environmental Assessment
Fishery Conservation and Management SUMMARY: The United States Patent and
(EA) for NMFS-led omnibus amendment Trademark Office (USPTO) has a
Act, provided the public has been to establish provisions for industry-
notified of the intent to take final action procedure under which an application
funded monitoring (IFM) across all will be advanced out of turn (accorded
to address the emergency.
Council-managed fisheries. They will special status) for examination if the
Special Accommodations also review and discuss the elements of applicant files a petition to make special
This meeting is accessible to people options for industry-funded monitoring with the appropriate showing. The
with disabilities. Requests for auxiliary in the Atlantic herring fishery, USPTO is providing a temporary basis
aids should be directed to the SEDAR including at-sea monitoring, portside (the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot)
office (see ADDRESSES) at least 10 sampling, and electronic monitoring under which an appellant may have an
business days prior to the meeting. (EM); develop recommendations ex parte appeal to the Patent Trial and
Note: The times and sequence specified in regarding the specific combinations of Appeal Board (Board) accorded special
this agenda are subject to change. measures (‘‘packages’’) to be analyzed in status if the appellant withdraws the
the Draft EA. Additionally, they will appeal in another application in which
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq. review updated information related to an ex parte appeal is also pending
Dated: June 10, 2015. herring/mackerel economic analysis in before the Board. The Expedited Patent
Tracey L. Thompson, omnibus IFM amendment. The Appeal Pilot will allow appellants
committees will also discuss other having multiple ex parte appeals
Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable
Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. elements of IFM amendment and currently pending before the Board to
develop related recommendations, as have greater control over the priority
[FR Doc. 2015–14627 Filed 6–12–15; 8:45 am]
appropriate. Other business will be with which their appeals are decided
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
and reduce the backlog of appeals
discussed as necessary.
pending before the Board.
Although non-emergency issues not DATES:
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE contained in this agenda may come Effective Date: June 19, 2015.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric before these groups for discussion, those Duration: The Expedited Patent
Administration issues may not be the subject of formal Appeal Pilot is being adopted on a
action during these meetings. Action temporary basis and will run until two
New England Fishery Management will be restricted to those issues thousand (2,000) appeals have been
Council; Public Meeting specifically listed in this notice and any accorded special status under the
issues arising after publication of this Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot, or until
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries
notice that require emergency action June 20, 2016, whichever occurs earlier.
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
under section 305(c) of the Magnuson- The USPTO may extend the Expedited
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce. Stevens Act, provided the public has Patent Appeal Pilot (with or without
been notified of the Council’s intent to modification) on either a temporary or
ACTION: Notice; public meetings.
take final action to address the permanent basis, or may discontinue the
SUMMARY: The New England Fishery emergency. Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot after June
Management Council (Council) is 20, 2016, depending upon the results of
Special Accommodations the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot.
scheduling a public meeting of its Joint
Observer and Herring Committees to This meeting is physically accessible FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
consider actions affecting New England to people with disabilities. Requests for Steven Bartlett, Patent Trial and Appeal
fisheries in the exclusive economic zone sign language interpretation or other Board, by telephone at 571–272–9797,
(EEZ). Recommendations from these auxiliary aids should be directed to or by electronic mail message at
groups will be brought to the full Thomas A. Nies, Executive Director, at expeditedpatentappealspilot@uspto.gov.
Council for formal consideration and (978) 465–0492, at least 5 days prior to SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Appeals to
action, if appropriate. the meeting date. the Board are normally taken up for
DATES: This meeting will be held on decision by the Board in the order in
Wednesday, July 1, 2015 at 9:30 a.m. Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq. which they are docketed. The USPTO
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allowable but for their dependency from 20, 2016, depending upon the results of or social security numbers, should not
rejected claims are not considered the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot. be included.
allowed claims but are treated as Additional information concerning the
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
rejected claims. See MPEP § 1215.01. Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot,
The filing of a request for continued Documentation prepared in support of
including statistical information
examination under 37 CFR 1.114 in an this information collection request is
concerning the Expedited Patent Appeal
application on appeal to the Board is available at www.regulations.gov.
Pilot and pendency of appeals before
treated as a request to withdraw the Requests for additional information
the Board, can found on the USPTO
appeal and to reopen prosecution of the should be directed to the Consumer
Internet Web site at: https://www-
application before the examiner. See 37 Financial Protection Bureau, (Attention:
cms.uspto.gov/patents-application-
CFR 1.114(d). A request for continued PRA Office), 1700 G Street NW.,
process/patent-trial-and-appeal-board/
examination may be filed with a Washington, DC 20552, (202) 435–9575,
expedited-patent-appeal-pilot.
petition under 37 CFR 41.3, and the or email: PRA@cfpb.gov. Please do not
Dated: June 10, 2015. submit comments to this mailbox.
withdrawal of an appeal in that
application resulting from the filing of Michelle K. Lee,
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
such a request for continued Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual
examination may form the basis for a Property and Director of the United States Title of Collection: Regulation F: Fair
petition to make special based upon the
Patent and Trademark Office. Debt Collection Practices Act.
Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot. The [FR Doc. 2015–14754 Filed 6–12–15; 8:45 am] OMB Control Number: 3170–XXXX.
withdrawal of an appeal resulting from BILLING CODE 3510–16–P
Type of Review: Request for a new
the filing of a request for continued OMB Control Number.
examination prior to the filing of a
petition under 37 CFR 41.3, however, Affected Public: State Governments.
BUREAU OF CONSUMER FINANCIAL
may not form the basis for a petition to PROTECTION Estimated Number of Respondents: 1.
make special based upon the Expedited Estimated Total Annual Burden
Patent Appeal Pilot. [Docket No: CFPB–2015–0023]
Hours: 2.
As discussed previously, an
application having no allowed claims Agency Information Collection Abstract: Regulation F (12 CFR part
becomes abandoned upon withdrawal of Activities: Comment Request 1006) establishes procedures and
an appeal. Any request for continued criteria whereby states may apply to the
AGENCY: Bureau of Consumer Financial Bureau for an exemption of a class of
examination, however, must be filed Protection.
prior to the abandonment of the debt collection practices within the
ACTION: Notice and request for comment. applying state from the provisions of the
application. See 37 CFR 1.114(a)(2).
Thus, an appellant wishing to file a Fair Debt Collection Practices Act as
SUMMARY: In accordance with the
request for continued examination in an provided in section 817 of the Act, 15
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995
application in which there is an appeal U.S.C. 1692. The information collection
(PRA), the Consumer Financial
to be withdrawn under the Expedited request will seek OMB approval for the
Protection Bureau (Bureau) is requesting
Patent Appeal Pilot must, if there are no state application contained in 12 CFR
new OMB control number information
allowed claims, file the request for 1006.2.
for a collection of information, titled,
continued examination with the petition ‘‘Regulation F: Fair Debt Collection Request for Comments: Comments are
under 37 CFR 41.3 to ensure that the Practices Act.’’ invited on: (a) Whether the collection of
request for continued examination is information is necessary for the proper
DATES: Written comments are
filed prior to the abandonment of the performance of the functions of the
application that will result from the encouraged and must be received on or
before August 14, 2015 to be assured of Bureau, including whether the
dismissal of the appeal. information will have practical utility;
A request for continued examination consideration.
(b) The accuracy of the Bureau’s
must include a submission. See 37 CFR ADDRESSES: You may submit comments,
estimate of the burden of the collection
1.114(a) and (c). An appeal brief, or a identified by the title of the information of information, including the validity of
reply brief, or related papers, are not collection, OMB Control Number (see the methods and the assumptions used;
considered a submission under 37 CFR below), and docket number (see above), (c) Ways to enhance the quality, utility,
1.114. See 37 CFR 1.114(c). The by any of the following methods: and clarity of the information to be
submission, however, may consist of the • Electronic: http:// collected; and (d) Ways to minimize the
arguments in a previously filed appeal www.regulations.gov. Follow the burden of the collection of information
brief or reply brief, or may simply instructions for submitting comments. on respondents, including through the
consist of a statement that incorporates • Mail: Consumer Financial use of automated collection techniques
by reference the arguments in a Protection Bureau (Attention: PRA or other forms of information
previously filed appeal brief or reply Office), 1700 G Street NW., Washington, technology. Comments submitted in
brief. See MPEP § 706.07(h). DC 20552. response to this notice will be
The Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot is • Hand Delivery/Courier: Consumer summarized and/or included in the
being adopted on a temporary basis Financial Protection Bureau (Attention: request for Office of Management and
until two thousand (2,000) appeals have PRA Office), 1275 First Street NE.,
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Budget (OMB) approval. All comments
been accorded special status under the Washington, DC 20002. will become a matter of public record.
Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot, or until Please note that comments submitted
June 20, 2016, whichever occurs earlier. after the comment period will not be Dated: June 10, 2015.
The USPTO may extend the Expedited accepted. In general, all comments Ashwin Vasan,
Patent Appeal Pilot (with or without received will become public records, Chief Information Officer, Bureau of
modification) on either a temporary or including any personal information Consumer Financial Protection.
permanent basis, or may discontinue the provided. Sensitive personal [FR Doc. 2015–14635 Filed 6–12–15; 8:45 am]
Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot after June information, such as account numbers BILLING CODE 4810–AM–P
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Document Created: 2015-12-15 15:14:11
Document Modified: 2015-12-15 15:14:11
| Category | Regulatory Information | |
| Collection | Federal Register | |
| sudoc Class | AE 2.7: GS 4.107: AE 2.106: | |
| Publisher | Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration | |
| Section | Notices | |
| Action | Notice. | |
| Contact | Steven Bartlett, Patent Trial and Appeal Board, by telephone at 571-272-9797, or by electronic mail message at [email protected] | |
| FR Citation | 80 FR 34145 |
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