Leahy-Smith America Invents Act Implementation
Click on the map for 2012 Fall Roadshow details
MESSAGE FROM JANET GONGOLA, PATENT REFORM COORDINATOR: Happy Anniversary to the AIA
Happy Anniversary to the America Invents Act!!! One year ago, on September 16, 2011, President Obama signed the AIA into law to bring the patent system into the 21st century. Seven provisions of the AIA go into effect at the one-year anniversary:
- Inventor's oath or declaration;
- Preissuance submissions;
- Supplemental examination;
- Citation of patent owner claim scope statements;
- Post grant review;
- Inter partes review; and
- Covered business method review
The USPTO busily has implemented these provisions through a series of final rules, which the agency has released to the public over the past couple months. An explanation of the provisions and the final rules themselves are available here on the micro-site:
Also, to help stakeholders learn about the provisions and USPTO implementing final rules taking effect on September 16, 2012, the agency is conducting roadshows across the country. Thus far, the agency has visited Minneapolis and Los Angeles along with its headquarters in Alexandria, Va. It will make stops throughout the remainder of September in Denver, Detroit, Atlanta, Houston, and New York City. The roadshows are free and open to the public. The agenda, specific venue locations, presentation materials, videos, and highlights of each roadshow stop are available on the micro-site:
Lastly, the USPTO has established two special ways for the public to engage with the agency for questions and clarifcations about the AIA: (i) an AIA help telephone line; and (ii) an AIA help email. Please use either one to get your AIA questions answered.
- AIA Help Telephone: 1-855-HELPAIA
- AIA Email: HelpAIA@uspto.gov
USPTO responses are provided for informational purposes only and should not be construed as providing legal advice or legal opinions.
MESSAGE FROM JANET GONGOLA, PATENT REFORM COORDINATOR: USPTO Releases Roadshow Presentation Materials
Today, on September 10, 2012, the USPTO starts its roadshow tour in Minneapolis, Minnesota to discuss new legal provisions and our implementing final rules that go into effect on September 16, 2012. We are pleased to be visiting seven additional cities across the United States as well, including Alexandria, Va., Atlanta, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, and New York City. To help you make the most of the roadshows, the USPTO is releasing is roadshow presentation materials. Additionally, we are releasing a reference guide that provides further details about the new provisions of law and final rules. Both documents are available here:
- Roadshow Slides
- Reference Guide to Statutory Provisions and Final Rules Effective on September 16, 2012
- The Patent Review Processing System (PRPS) Video
More information about the roadshows, such as venues and an agenda, is available at the link below. Also, we will be webcasting live from Minneapolis; Alexandria, Va.; and Los Angeles. Webcast access info is available at the link below. Don’t miss these opportunities to learn how to navigate the new patent law from agency experts; there will be multiple opportunities to interact with them throughout the day for our live and webinar audiences.
MESSAGE FROM JANET GONGOLA, PATENT REFORM COORDINATOR: USPTO Releases Fillable Forms and Quick Reference Guide for How to File an Inventor's Oath or Declaration Post-AIA
The inventor's oath or declaration provision of the AIA is effective on September 16, 2012, and introduces changes that offer flexibility for filing an inventor's oath or declaration. To help inventors and patent applicants navigate the changes, the USPTO has developed an Inventor's Oath or Declaration Quick Reference Guide. The guide identifies when an application data sheet must be filed, when a substitute statement can be used, and how an assignment may be used as the inventor's oath or declaration.
Inventor's Oath or Declaration Quick Reference Guide
Besides the Inventor's Oath or Declaration Quick Reference Guide, the USPTO also has created fillable forms for oaths and declarations, substitute statements, and application data sheets. These forms are available on the USPTO Forms micro-site.
I encourage you to consult the guide and fillable forms when submitting an oath or declaration for applications filed on or after September 16, 2012. Also, if you have questions regarding the inventor's oath or declaration provision or USPTO implementing rules, USPTO help is available at 1-855-HELPAIA or HelpAIA@uspto.gov.
MESSAGE FROM JANET GONGOLA, PATENT REFORM COORDINATOR: USPTO Releases Guide for Electronic Filing of Preissuance Submissions
As of September 16, 2012, the USPTO is accepting submissions of printed publications by a third party of potential relevance to the patentability of another's claimed invention under the preissuance submission provision. Targeted preissuance submissions by third parties can place the most relevant art into the record of a patent application. In turn, an examiner will be positioned to make the most informed and efficient patentability determination possible, thereby either advancing an application to grant or issuing a rejection to prevent a low quality patent from issuing.
A third party may file a preissuance submission by paper or electronically; submission by fasimile is not permitted. The USPTO encourages the use of electronic submissions via EFS Web for several reasons. First, EFS Web guides a third party through the content requirements for a preissuance submission to ensure that the third party makes a compliant submission. Second, the EFS Web system calculates the timeliness of the submission to determine whether the submission is being made during permitted statutory time window. Lastly, the Office will consider an electronic preissuance submission filed through EFS Web faster because a paper submission must be processed into electronic form before it is provided to the examiner.
To facilitate electronically filing a preissuance submission using EFS Web, the Office has created an EFS Web Quick Start Guide. This guide outlines the steps that a third party must follow to make an electronic submission. Check out the guide to simplify your preissuance submissions:
