After withdrawing the finality of a rejection, can the next Office action be made final?
Yes, after withdrawing the finality of a rejection, the next Office action can be made final under certain conditions. The MPEP 706.07(d) states:
“Once the finality of the Office action has been withdrawn, the next Office action may be made final if the conditions set forth in MPEP § 706.07(a) are met.”
This means that examiners must refer to the criteria outlined in MPEP 706.07(a) to determine if a subsequent final rejection is appropriate. These conditions typically involve considering whether new grounds of rejection are being introduced and the overall prosecution history of the application.
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