Archives: USPTO

US Patent and Trademark Office Uses Authority Granted Under CARES Act to Temporarily Extend Due Date for Certain Patent and Trademark Matters

By Fabian Koenigbauer on April 1, 2020 Posted in USPTO

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act gives the director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) the ability to manage due dates in patent and trademark matters if certain criteria are met. On March 31, the director of the USPTO issued a notice of waiver of patent-related timing deadlines (patent notice) … Continue Reading

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act Grants the US Patent and Trademark Office the Authority to Manage Statutory Due Dates

By Fabian Koenigbauer on March 27, 2020 Posted in USPTO

As described in our previous alert, earlier this week the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) issued a notice waiving certain petition fees. In the notice, the USPTO cautioned that “[t]his notice does not grant waivers or extensions of dates or requirements set by statute.” The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, H.R. … Continue Reading

USPTO Waives Petition to Revive Fees for Patents, Patent Applications, Trademarks and Trademark Applications Abandoned Because of an Inability to Respond Due to COVID-19

By Fabian Koenigbauer on March 17, 2020 Posted in Patents, Trademark, USPTO

To give patent and trademark applicants as well as patent and trademark owners relief from the implications of the COVID-19 outbreak, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) determined that the COVID-19 outbreak qualifies as an “extraordinary situation” and exercised its authority to waive certain petition fees. For patent owners and applicants unable to … Continue Reading

USPTO Tightens Unintentional Delay Standards for Certain Petitions to Revive, Acceptances of Delayed Maintenance Fee Payments, and Delayed Priority or Benefit Claims

By Fabian Koenigbauer on March 2, 2020 Posted in USPTO

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) allows for the revival of abandoned applications, acceptance of delayed maintenance fee payments, and acceptance of delayed priority or benefit claims by the filing of a petition.[1] Abandoned applications can be revived only if the abandonment was “unintentional.”[2] Delayed maintenance fee payments and priority or benefit claims … Continue Reading

PTAB by the numbers: A closer look at the most recent PTAB AIA trial statistics

By Fabian Koenigbauer on January 23, 2020 Posted in USPTO

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) recently posted the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) statistics for December 2019 (first quarter of FY2020).[1] Despite some inconsistences in the data, the statistics reveal some trends: Inter partes reviews (IPRs) remain the most common type of America Invents Act (AIA) trial. Life science/chemical patents and … Continue Reading

The ‘Integrated Into a Practical Application’ Test of the 2019 Revised Patent Subject Matter Eligibility Guidance

By Michael Stein on January 7, 2019 Posted in USPTO

On Jan. 4, 2019, the USPTO announced revised guidance relevant to Section 101 rejections (“2019 Revised Patent Subject Matter Eligibility Guidance”). The 2019 Revised Patent Subject Matter Eligibility Guidance explains that a claim that recites a judicial exception is not “directed to” the judicial exception if the judicial exception is “integrated into a practical application” … Continue Reading

Beware of Fraudulent Requests to USPTO to Change Official Trademark Registration Records

By Deborah A. Wilcox on October 23, 2018 Posted in Trademark, USPTO

We have been alerted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) of unauthorized attempts by unknown parties to amend our clients’ trademark registration records. Filing Correspondents and Attorneys of Record must remain vigilant for notices from the USPTO and respond to them swiftly to verify whether the requested change was authorized. We have … Continue Reading