What actions can an applicant take in response to an examiner’s action?
According to MPEP 203.03, an applicant has several options when responding to an examiner’s action:
The applicant’s reply may be confined to an election, a traverse of the action taken by the examiner or may include an amendment of the application.
These options can be broken down as follows:
- Election: Choosing between different inventions or species identified by the examiner.
- Traverse: Arguing against the examiner’s rejections or objections.
- Amendment: Modifying the application to address the examiner’s concerns or to clarify the invention.
To learn more:
Topics:
MPEP 200 - Types and Status of Application; Benefit and Priority,
Patent Law,
Patent Procedure