PTO: Electronic Filing Update

Midnight Filing: The USPTO continues to changes its rules and regulations to favor electronic filing. Now, users of the electronic filing system (EFS) get a last minute bonus: Correspondence submitted via EFS-WEB will now be considered timely if submitted on the due date. (The old rule required it to be received at the PTO on the due date).

You should be cautious and retain  your USPTO E-filing acknowledgment. Filings should be immediately available for review on Private PAIR.

Finally if EFS-WEB is not working, the practitioner should be ready with an alternative method of filing such as fax or snail mail.

National Stage Evidence: The PTO has also given notice that the EFS-WEB acknowledgment receipt will be sufficient to show that correspondence submitted in a national stage application was actually received by the Office.

Link: Read the USPTO Notice

USPTO Announces Release of Private PAIR 7.0: Live Online Launch and Training

The PTO asked me to do a press release on the newest release of the PTO’s online patent prosecution database: Private PAIR 7.0.  New features include:

Customer Number Details Online Self-Administration

Attorney Docket Number Online Self-Administration

Pending Non-Published PCT Application Search

Ordering of Certified Copies for Private Applications via Private PAIR

XML Application Data Download

Display References Tab will have two more sections of references

The PTO will hold a 90 minute interactive web-event discussing the new features. Sign up here.