Can a practitioner acting in a representative capacity withdraw from an application?

The USPTO has specific rules regarding withdrawal for practitioners acting in a representative capacity under 37 CFR 1.34:

• The USPTO will not approve withdrawal requests from practitioners acting in a representative capacity.
• These practitioners are responsible for the correspondence they file in the application while acting in a representative capacity.
• There is no need for these practitioners to obtain the USPTO’s permission to withdraw from representation.

However, it’s important to note that practitioners acting in a representative capacity, like those with power of attorney, remain responsible for compliance with 37 CFR 1.56 (duty of disclosure) and 37 CFR 11.18 (signature and certification requirements) for documents they file.

This distinction ensures that practitioners understand their ongoing responsibilities even when acting in a limited representative capacity.

To learn more:

• representative capacity
• patent practitioner
• withdrawal rules
• USPTO regulations