Vice Chief Administrative Patent Judge

0651-AD68 202310 The Regulatory Plan and the Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions 0651 Patent and Trademark Office PTO 0600 Department of Commerce DOC Rules Governing Pre-Issuance Internal Circulation and Review of Decisions Within the Patent Trial and Appeal Board

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO or Office) would amend 37 CFR to add part 43 to govern decision circulation and review within the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) for all areas of jurisdiction of the PTAB, including America Invents Act (AIA) proceedings, appeals, and interferences. Since May of 2022, the USPTO has been using an interim process for PTAB decision circulation and internal PTAB review. The processes were put in place in recognition that it is important to stakeholders that the USPTO maintain a consistent and clear approach to substantive areas of patent law and PTAB-specific procedures, while maintaining open decision-making processes. The USPTO issued a Request for Comments in July 2022 to obtain public feedback on the interim processes. This proposal was developed in consideration of the public feedback the USPTO received in response to the Request for Comments.

]]> Substantive, Nonsignificant Previously Published in The Unified Agenda Proposed Rule Stage Undetermined No 37 CFR 43 35 U.S.C. 2(b)(2) 35 U.S.C. 6 35 U.S.C. 21 35 U.S.C. 23 35 U.S.C. 41 35 U.S.C. 135 35 U.S.C. 311 to 316 35 U.S.C. 321 to 326 Pub. L. 112-29 Pub. L. 112-274 No Request for Comments 07/20/2022 87 FR 43249 Comment Period End 09/19/2022 NPRM 10/06/2023 88 FR 69578 NPRM Comment Period End 12/05/2023 Final Action 01/00/2024 No None No No No Melissa Haapala Vice Chief Administrative Patent Judge 0651 Patent and Trademark Office PTO 303 297-4301 571 273-0053 melissa.haapala@uspto.gov P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria VA 22313-1450