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USPTO Announces Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot Program
Practical Law Legal Update 2-616-4895 (Approx. 2 pages)
USPTO Announces Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot Program
by Practical Law Intellectual Property & Technology
| Published on 15 Jun 2015 • USA (National/Federal) |
The US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) announced the initiation of the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot, a program in which an appellant with multiple ex parte appeals pending before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) may withdraw one of the appeals in exchange for receiving special status on another appeal.
On June 15, 2015, the USPTO issued a notice announcing the initiation of a temporary program called the Expedited Patent Appeal Pilot. Under this program, an individual who initiates an ex parte appeal before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) may be given special status if that appellant withdraws another ex parte appeal that is pending on a different application. This process:
- Allows an appellant with multiple pending ex parte appeals to have greater control over which appeals receive priority.
- Reduces the backlog of appeals pending before the PTAB.
This program will be effective on June 19, 2015. It will run until 2000 appeals have been given special status under the program or June 20, 2016, whichever occurs first. At that time, the USPTO may extend the program depending upon the results of the program.