America Invents Act reintroduces USPTO prioritised examination procedure
Date:
5 October, 2011
With the signing of the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (AIA) the proposed prioritised examination procedure at the USPTO has been reintroduced and became effective from 26 September 2011.
With the signing of the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (AIA) on Friday 16 September 2011, the proposed prioritised examination procedure at the USPTO (as discussed in the article appearing on our website on 1 March 2011), but then postponed due to budgetary constraints, has been reintroduced and became effective from 26 September 2011.
As foreshadowed in the article, the examination fee payable is US$4800 for large entities and US$2400 for small entities. No fee reduction applies for the newly introduced micro entity applicant. Other fees associated with the filing of an application, such as the filing fee and search fee, are payable over and above the examination fee.
This procedure may be of benefit for applicants wishing to expedite examination of patent applications relating to commercially important inventions without the onerous requirements of conducting a detailed pre-examination search and analysis.
Click here to read the original article on the examination changes.
Click here to read the quick guide on the America Invents Act.