1.102—Advancement of examination.
(a)
Applications will not be advanced out of turn for examination or for further action except as provided by this part, or upon order of the Director to expedite the business of the Office, or upon filing of a request under paragraph (b) of this section or upon filing a petition under paragraphs (c) or (d) of this section with a showing which, in the opinion of the Director, will justify so advancing it.
(b)
Applications wherein the inventions are deemed of peculiar importance to some branch of the public service and the head of some department of the Government requests immediate action for that reason, may be advanced for examination.
(c)
A petition to make an application special may be filed without a fee if the basis for the petition is:
(1)
The applicant's age or health; or
(2)
That the invention will materially:
(i)
Enhance the quality of the environment;
(ii)
Contribute to the development or conservation of energy resources; or
(iii)
Contribute to countering terrorism.
(d)
A petition to make an application special on grounds other than those referred to in paragraph (c) of this section must be accompanied by the fee set forth in § 1.17(h).
Code of Federal Regulations
(
36 U.S.C. 6
;
15 U.S.C. 1113, 1123
)
Code of Federal Regulations
[24 FR 10332, Dec. 22, 1959, as amended at 47 FR 41276, Sept. 17, 1982; 54 FR 6903, Feb. 15, 1989; 60 FR 20226, Apr. 25, 1995; 62 FR 53191, Oct. 10, 1997; 65 FR 54671, Sept. 8, 2000; 69 FR 56542, Sept. 21, 2004]
Code of Federal Regulations
Effective Date Note:
At 76 FR 18407, Apr. 4, 2011, § 1.102 was amended by revising paragraph (a) and adding paragraph (e), effective May 4, 2011. At 76 FR 23876, Apr. 29, 2011, these amendments were delayed until further notice. For the convenience of the user, the added and revised text is set forth as follows:
Code of Federal Regulations
81
§ 1.102
Advancement of examination.
(a) Applications will not be advanced out of turn for examination or for further action except as provided by this part, or upon order of the Director to expedite the business of the Office, or upon filing of a request under paragraph (b) or (e) of this section or upon filing a petition or request under paragraph (c) or (d) of this section with a showing which, in the opinion of the Director, will justify so advancing it.
(e) A request for prioritized examination under this paragraph may be filed only with an original utility or plant nonprovisional application under
35 U.S.C. 111(a)
that is complete as defined by § 1.51(b)
, with any fees due under § 1.16
paid on filing. If the application is a utility application, it must be filed via the Office's electronic filing system (EFS-Web). A request for prioritized examination under this paragraph must be present upon filing and must be accompanied by the prioritized examination fee set forth in § 1.17(c)
, the processing fee set forth in § 1.17(i)
, and the publication fee set forth in § 1.18(d)
. Prioritized examination under this paragraph will not be accorded to a design application or reissue application, and will not be accorded to any application that contains or is amended to contain more than four independent claims, more than thirty total claims, or any multiple dependent claim.
Action by Applicant and Further Consideration
Authority:
Secs. 1.111 to 1.113 also issued under 35 U.S.C. 132.
Amendments
Authority:
Secs. 1.115 to 1.127 also issued under 35 U.S.C. 132.
Transitional Provisions
Affidavits Overcoming Rejections
Interviews
Time for Reply by Applicant; Abandonment of Application
Authority:
Secs. 1.135 to 1.138 also issued under 35 U.S.C. 133.
Joinder of Inventions in One Application; Restriction
Authority:
Secs. 1.141 to 1.147 also issued under 35 U.S.C. 121.
Design Patents
Plant Patents
Reissues
Authority:
Secs. 1.171 to 1.179 also issued under 35 U.S.C. 251.
Petitions and Action by the Director
Authority:
35 U.S.C. 6; 15 U.S.C. 1113, 1123.
Appeal to the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences
Authority:
Secs. 1.191 to 1.198 also issued under 35 U.S.C. 134.
Publication of Applications
Source:
65 FR 57058, Sept. 20, 2000, unless otherwise noted.
Miscellaneous Provisions
Protests and Public Use Proceedings
Review of Patent and Trademark Office Decisions by Court
Allowance and Issue of Patent
Disclaimer
Correction of Errors in Patent
Arbitration Awards
Amendment of Rules
Maintenance Fees