How are assignment records made accessible to the public?

The USPTO makes assignment records accessible to the public in several ways, as described in 37 CFR 1.12:

1. Separate assignment records for patents and trademarks are maintained and are open to public inspection.
2. Assignment records, digests, and indexes for patents are available on the USPTO website.
3. Images of assignment documents recorded from June 1998 onwards are viewable on the Office website.
4. For earlier records, the public can place an order to view images.

The MPEP notes: ‘The Office will not open only certain parts of an assignment document to public inspection. If such a document contains two or more items, any one of which, if alone, would be open to such inspection, then the entire document will be open.’

However, documents relating only to pending unpublished applications are not open to public inspection.