Patent Law FAQ
This FAQ answers all your questions about patent law, patent procedure, and the patent examination process.
MPEP 400 – Representative of Applicant or Owner (2)
A substitute statement is a document that can be used in place of an oath or declaration in patent applications involving deceased or legally incapacitated inventors. According to MPEP 409.01(a):
See 37 CFR 1.64 and MPEP § 604 concerning the execution of a substitute statement by a legal representative in lieu of an oath or declaration.
The substitute statement can be executed by:
- A legal representative of the deceased or incapacitated inventor
- An assignee or obligated assignee
- A party with sufficient proprietary interest in the invention
This allows the application process to continue even when the inventor is unable to provide an oath or declaration due to death or incapacity. The substitute statement must comply with the requirements set forth in 37 CFR 1.64.
To learn more:
When a patent application has multiple inventors and one of them dies, the process for continuing the application depends on whether there’s a power of attorney in place. According to MPEP 409.01(a):
When an application is being prosecuted by joint inventor-applicants without a joint inventor-applicant or patent practitioner having been granted a power of attorney, and a joint inventor-applicant dies after filing the application, the living joint inventor(s) who are the applicant must submit proof that the other joint inventor-applicant is dead.
Here’s what happens in this scenario:
- The surviving inventors must provide proof of the deceased inventor’s death to the USPTO.
- If no legal representative of the deceased inventor intervenes, only the signatures of the living inventors are required on USPTO documents.
- If a legal representative of the deceased inventor intervenes, they must submit a substitute statement complying with 37 CFR 1.64.
- Once a legal representative intervenes, signatures from both the living inventors and the legal representative are required on USPTO documents.
- This requirement continues until the legal representative and living inventors appoint a new representative.
It’s crucial for the surviving inventors to understand these requirements to ensure the application process continues smoothly.
To learn more:
Patent Law (3)
When adding a new inventor to a patent application, additional documentation is required. According to 37 CFR 1.48(b):
An oath or declaration as required by § 1.63, or a substitute statement in compliance with § 1.64, will be required for any actual inventor who has not yet executed such an oath or declaration.
This means that any newly added inventor must submit either an oath or declaration in compliance with 37 CFR 1.63, or a substitute statement in compliance with 37 CFR 1.64. The specific requirements for these documents depend on the application’s filing date. For applications filed on or after September 16, 2012, refer to MPEP § 602.01(a) for oath or declaration requirements and MPEP § 604 for substitute statement requirements.
To learn more:
A substitute statement is a document that can be used in place of an oath or declaration in patent applications involving deceased or legally incapacitated inventors. According to MPEP 409.01(a):
See 37 CFR 1.64 and MPEP § 604 concerning the execution of a substitute statement by a legal representative in lieu of an oath or declaration.
The substitute statement can be executed by:
- A legal representative of the deceased or incapacitated inventor
- An assignee or obligated assignee
- A party with sufficient proprietary interest in the invention
This allows the application process to continue even when the inventor is unable to provide an oath or declaration due to death or incapacity. The substitute statement must comply with the requirements set forth in 37 CFR 1.64.
To learn more:
When a patent application has multiple inventors and one of them dies, the process for continuing the application depends on whether there’s a power of attorney in place. According to MPEP 409.01(a):
When an application is being prosecuted by joint inventor-applicants without a joint inventor-applicant or patent practitioner having been granted a power of attorney, and a joint inventor-applicant dies after filing the application, the living joint inventor(s) who are the applicant must submit proof that the other joint inventor-applicant is dead.
Here’s what happens in this scenario:
- The surviving inventors must provide proof of the deceased inventor’s death to the USPTO.
- If no legal representative of the deceased inventor intervenes, only the signatures of the living inventors are required on USPTO documents.
- If a legal representative of the deceased inventor intervenes, they must submit a substitute statement complying with 37 CFR 1.64.
- Once a legal representative intervenes, signatures from both the living inventors and the legal representative are required on USPTO documents.
- This requirement continues until the legal representative and living inventors appoint a new representative.
It’s crucial for the surviving inventors to understand these requirements to ensure the application process continues smoothly.
To learn more:
Patent Procedure (3)
When adding a new inventor to a patent application, additional documentation is required. According to 37 CFR 1.48(b):
An oath or declaration as required by § 1.63, or a substitute statement in compliance with § 1.64, will be required for any actual inventor who has not yet executed such an oath or declaration.
This means that any newly added inventor must submit either an oath or declaration in compliance with 37 CFR 1.63, or a substitute statement in compliance with 37 CFR 1.64. The specific requirements for these documents depend on the application’s filing date. For applications filed on or after September 16, 2012, refer to MPEP § 602.01(a) for oath or declaration requirements and MPEP § 604 for substitute statement requirements.
To learn more:
A substitute statement is a document that can be used in place of an oath or declaration in patent applications involving deceased or legally incapacitated inventors. According to MPEP 409.01(a):
See 37 CFR 1.64 and MPEP § 604 concerning the execution of a substitute statement by a legal representative in lieu of an oath or declaration.
The substitute statement can be executed by:
- A legal representative of the deceased or incapacitated inventor
- An assignee or obligated assignee
- A party with sufficient proprietary interest in the invention
This allows the application process to continue even when the inventor is unable to provide an oath or declaration due to death or incapacity. The substitute statement must comply with the requirements set forth in 37 CFR 1.64.
To learn more:
When a patent application has multiple inventors and one of them dies, the process for continuing the application depends on whether there’s a power of attorney in place. According to MPEP 409.01(a):
When an application is being prosecuted by joint inventor-applicants without a joint inventor-applicant or patent practitioner having been granted a power of attorney, and a joint inventor-applicant dies after filing the application, the living joint inventor(s) who are the applicant must submit proof that the other joint inventor-applicant is dead.
Here’s what happens in this scenario:
- The surviving inventors must provide proof of the deceased inventor’s death to the USPTO.
- If no legal representative of the deceased inventor intervenes, only the signatures of the living inventors are required on USPTO documents.
- If a legal representative of the deceased inventor intervenes, they must submit a substitute statement complying with 37 CFR 1.64.
- Once a legal representative intervenes, signatures from both the living inventors and the legal representative are required on USPTO documents.
- This requirement continues until the legal representative and living inventors appoint a new representative.
It’s crucial for the surviving inventors to understand these requirements to ensure the application process continues smoothly.
To learn more: