MPEP § 317.02 — Correction of Unrecorded Returned Documents and Cover Sheets (Annotated Rules)
§317.02 Correction of Unrecorded Returned Documents and Cover Sheets
This page consolidates and annotates all enforceable requirements under MPEP § 317.02, including statutory authority, regulatory rules, examiner guidance, and practice notes. It is provided as guidance, with links to the ground truth sources. This is information only, it is not legal advice.
Correction of Unrecorded Returned Documents and Cover Sheets
This section addresses Correction of Unrecorded Returned Documents and Cover Sheets. Primary authority: 37 CFR 3.51, 37 CFR 1.8, and 37 CFR 1.10. Contains: 1 permission and 3 other statements.
Key Rules
Certificate of Mailing
Assignment documents and cover sheets, or copies of the same, which are returned by the Assignment Recordation Branch will indicate the original date of receipt by the Office and will be accompanied by a letter which will indicate that if the returned papers are corrected and resubmitted to the Office within the time specified in the letter, the Office will consider the original date of receipt of the papers as the date of recording of the document. See 37 CFR 3.51. The certification procedure under 37 CFR 1.8 (see MPEP § 512) or the “Priority Mail Express ® ” procedure under 37 CFR 1.10 (see MPEP § 513) may be used for resubmissions of returned papers to obtain the benefit of the date of deposit in the United States Postal Service to establish that the papers were returned within the time period specified. If the returned papers are not corrected and resubmitted within the specified period, the date of receipt of the corrected papers will be considered to be the date of recording of the document. The specified period to resubmit the returned papers will not be extended.
Assignment documents and cover sheets, or copies of the same, which are returned by the Assignment Recordation Branch will indicate the original date of receipt by the Office and will be accompanied by a letter which will indicate that if the returned papers are corrected and resubmitted to the Office within the time specified in the letter, the Office will consider the original date of receipt of the papers as the date of recording of the document. See 37 CFR 3.51. The certification procedure under 37 CFR 1.8 (see MPEP § 512) or the “Priority Mail Express ® ” procedure under 37 CFR 1.10 (see MPEP § 513) may be used for resubmissions of returned papers to obtain the benefit of the date of deposit in the United States Postal Service to establish that the papers were returned within the time period specified. If the returned papers are not corrected and resubmitted within the specified period, the date of receipt of the corrected papers will be considered to be the date of recording of the document. The specified period to resubmit the returned papers will not be extended.
Assignment documents and cover sheets, or copies of the same, which are returned by the Assignment Recordation Branch will indicate the original date of receipt by the Office and will be accompanied by a letter which will indicate that if the returned papers are corrected and resubmitted to the Office within the time specified in the letter, the Office will consider the original date of receipt of the papers as the date of recording of the document. See 37 CFR 3.51. The certification procedure under 37 CFR 1.8 (see MPEP § 512) or the “Priority Mail Express ® ” procedure under 37 CFR 1.10 (see MPEP § 513) may be used for resubmissions of returned papers to obtain the benefit of the date of deposit in the United States Postal Service to establish that the papers were returned within the time period specified. If the returned papers are not corrected and resubmitted within the specified period, the date of receipt of the corrected papers will be considered to be the date of recording of the document. The specified period to resubmit the returned papers will not be extended.
Assignment documents and cover sheets, or copies of the same, which are returned by the Assignment Recordation Branch will indicate the original date of receipt by the Office and will be accompanied by a letter which will indicate that if the returned papers are corrected and resubmitted to the Office within the time specified in the letter, the Office will consider the original date of receipt of the papers as the date of recording of the document. See 37 CFR 3.51. The certification procedure under 37 CFR 1.8 (see MPEP § 512) or the “Priority Mail Express ® ” procedure under 37 CFR 1.10 (see MPEP § 513) may be used for resubmissions of returned papers to obtain the benefit of the date of deposit in the United States Postal Service to establish that the papers were returned within the time period specified. If the returned papers are not corrected and resubmitted within the specified period, the date of receipt of the corrected papers will be considered to be the date of recording of the document. The specified period to resubmit the returned papers will not be extended.
Citations
| Primary topic | Citation |
|---|---|
| Certificate of Mailing | 37 CFR § 1.10 |
| Certificate of Mailing | 37 CFR § 1.8 |
| Certificate of Mailing | 37 CFR § 3.51 |
| Certificate of Mailing | MPEP § 512 |
| Certificate of Mailing | MPEP § 513 |
Source Text from USPTO’s MPEP
This is an exact copy of the MPEP from the USPTO. It is here for your reference to see the section in context.
Official MPEP § 317.02 — Correction of Unrecorded Returned Documents and Cover Sheets
Source: USPTO317.02 Correction of Unrecorded Returned Documents and Cover Sheets [R-01.2024]
Assignment documents and cover sheets, or copies of the same, which are returned by the Assignment Recordation Branch will indicate the original date of receipt by the Office and will be accompanied by a letter which will indicate that if the returned papers are corrected and resubmitted to the Office within the time specified in the letter, the Office will consider the original date of receipt of the papers as the date of recording of the document. See 37 CFR 3.51. The certification procedure under 37 CFR 1.8 (see MPEP § 512) or the “Priority Mail Express®” procedure under 37 CFR 1.10 (see MPEP § 513) may be used for resubmissions of returned papers to obtain the benefit of the date of deposit in the United States Postal Service to establish that the papers were returned within the time period specified. If the returned papers are not corrected and resubmitted within the specified period, the date of receipt of the corrected papers will be considered to be the date of recording of the document. The specified period to resubmit the returned papers will not be extended.