Double patenting is an issue that arises during the examination of an application for a patent. It occurs when an inventor attempts to obtain multiple patents for the same invention or obvious variations of the same invention. This leads to a rejection of a patent application because the Patent Office does not want inventors to have patents of different patent terms related to … [Read more...]
Office Action
An office action is a written document from the USPTO rejecting the patent application or requesting additional information or documents.
Browse related articles below.
What is an Ex parte Quayle Action?
An Ex parte Quayle Action is an action where the claims have been allowed but the patent application is objected to for certain technicalities (i.e., minor formalities). The Ex parte Quayle Action officially closes prosecution and requires the applicant to fix the technicalities. A response must be filed within 2 months of the mail date of the office action and may be filed … [Read more...]
What is a Notice to File Missing Parts?
A Notice to File Missing Parts is an office action identifying part(s) of the patent application that was not initially filed but should have been filed. A complete patent application was not filed. Those parts must now be filed to complete the patent application. Otherwise, examination on the merits of the invention will be delayed. A response including the identified … [Read more...]
Office Actions: Rejections versus Objections
A rejection means that the examiner will not allow the claimed invention based on its merit. The examiner is rejecting the claims as being ineligible for patent protection, not novel or not new, obvious, or indefinite. An objection means that the technicalities or formalities of the patent application are incorrect. They need to be fixed before the patent application can … [Read more...]
What is a final office action v. the non-final office action?
A final office action means the examiner has rejected the patent application and does not need to consider any further claim amendments and arguments. The examination has ended and the patent application will be abandoned. Please note that a final office action is never final. The examination can always be continued by filing a request for continued examination (RCE), a … [Read more...]
What is a filing receipt for a patent application?
A filing receipt is a document from the Patent Office which lists basic and critical information about your patent application. Basic information includes, for example, the filing date and the serial number of your patent application. Critical information (highlighted in green below) includes information related to, for example, any claim of priority and foreign filing … [Read more...]
How to respond to a final office action?
A final office action indicates that a patent application has been rejected twice. The examiner does not need to consider further amendments and arguments. However, there are ways to continue the examination. This article will also cover a basic strategy for responding to a final office action. What is an office action? An office action on the merits is a written … [Read more...]
What is an Office Action?
An office action is a written explanation of an examiner's review of your patent application. In the office action, the examiner will object to the formalities of the application and reject or allow the patent application. This article explains several types of Office Actions and how to respond to them: Filing receipt Notice to file missing parts Restriction … [Read more...]