37 CFR § 1.114 — Request for continued examination. (MPEP Coverage Index) – BlueIron IP
37 CFR § 1.114 Request for continued examination.
This page consolidates MPEP guidance interpreting 37 CFR § 1.114, including 429 rules from the Manual of Patent Examining Procedure. It is provided as guidance, with links to the ground truth sources. This is information only, it is not legal advice.
Summary
MPEP Section 1.114 outlines the procedures for requesting continued examination, emphasizing the eighteen-month publication requirement and specific conditions for abandoned applications.
What this section covers
- This section covers the Request for Continued Examination (RCE) process, including the eighteen-month publication requirement after the earliest filing date and requirements for abandoned applications.
Key obligations
- The primary requirement is to request continued examination within eighteen months of the earliest filing date.
- For abandoned applications, include a copy of the specification and drawings in the request for continued examination.
- Compliance with authority requirements, such as payment of fees in certain circumstances, is mandatory.
Practice notes
- Ensure timely submission of the request for continued examination to avoid missing the eighteen-month deadline.
- Include all required elements in an abandoned application reply to comply with the MPEP guidelines.
Official MPEP § 1.114 — Request for continued examination.
Source: USPTOLast Modified: 10/30/2024 08:50:22
1.114 Request for continued examination.
- (a) If prosecution in an application is closed, an
applicant may request continued examination of the application by
filing a submission and the fee set forth in §
1.17(e)
prior to the earliest of:
- (1) Payment of the issue fee, unless a petition under § 1.313 is granted;
- (2) Abandonment of the application; or
- (3) The filing of a notice of appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit under 35 U.S.C. 141 , or the commencement of a civil action under 35 U.S.C. 145 or 146 , unless the appeal or civil action is terminated.
- (b) Prosecution in an application is closed as used in this section means that the application is under appeal, or that the last Office action is a final action (§ 1.113 ), a notice of allowance (§ 1.311) , or an action that otherwise closes prosecution in the application.
- (c) A submission as used in this section includes, but is not limited to, an information disclosure statement, an amendment to the written description, claims, or drawings, new arguments, or new evidence in support of patentability. If reply to an Office action under 35 U.S.C. 132 is outstanding, the submission must meet the reply requirements of § 1.111 .
- (d) If an applicant timely files a submission and fee set forth in § 1.17(e) , the Office will withdraw the finality of any Office action and the submission will be entered and considered. If an applicant files a request for continued examination under this section after appeal, but prior to a decision on the appeal, it will be treated as a request to withdraw the appeal and to reopen prosecution of the application before the examiner. An appeal brief (§ 41.37 of this title) or a reply brief (§ 41.41 of this title), or related papers, will not be considered a submission under this section.
- (e) The provisions of this section do not apply
to:
- (1) A provisional application;
- (2) An application for a utility or plant patent filed under 35 U.S.C. 111(a) before June 8, 1995;
- (3) An international application filed under 35 U.S.C. 363 before June 8, 1995, or an international application that does not comply with 35 U.S.C. 371 ;
- (4) An application for a design patent;
- (5) An international design application; or
- (6) A patent under reexamination.
[Added 65 FR 14865, Mar. 20, 2000, effective May 29, 2000; revised 65 FR 50092, Aug. 16, 2000; para. (d) revised, 69 FR 49959, Aug. 12, 2004, effective Sept. 13, 2004; paras. (a) and (d) revised and (f), (g), and (h) added, 72 FR 46716, Aug. 21, 2007 (implementation enjoined and never became effective); paras. (a) and (d) revised and (f), (g), and (h) removed, 74 FR 52686, Oct. 14, 2009, effective Oct. 14, 2009 (to remove changes made by the final rules in 72 FR 46716 from the CFR); paras. (e)(3)-(5) revised and para. (e)(6) added, 80 FR 17918, Apr. 2, 2015, effective May 13, 2015]
- Abandonment
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- Access Document Types
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- Aia Overview
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- Applicability
- Allowance Quality Review
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- Appeal Brief
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- Board Decision
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- Post Decision Procedure
- Reply Brief
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- Continuing Applications
- Cip Applications
- Director Authority
- Common Petition Types
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- Petition Procedures
- Duty Of Disclosure
- Disclosure Basics
- Ids
- Ids Timing Windows
- Entity Status
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- Ex Parte Reexamination
- Reexamination Examination
- Examination Procedure
- Allowance Practice
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- Amendments Practice
- Examiner Action
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- Form Paragraphs
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- Final Rejection
- After Final Practice
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- Inter Partes Reexamination
- Inter Partes Reexam Procedure
- International Design
- Ida Filing
- Maintenance Fee Late
- Application Revival
- Late Payment Surcharge
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- Patent Issuance
- Issue Fee
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- Notice Of Allowance
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- Patent Term
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- Pct
- Pct Filing
- Pct National Stage Entry
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- Pct Request
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- Benefit Delayed
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- Ptab Contested Case
- Reissue
- Reply Period
- Special Period Situations
- Section 112
- Section 112A
- New Matter
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- Signature Requirements
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