Can a withdrawn attorney continue to receive Office communications for a patent application?
Can a withdrawn attorney continue to receive Office communications for a patent application?
No, a withdrawn attorney should not continue to receive Office communications for a patent application. The MPEP 402.06 clearly states:
“An attorney or agent withdrawing from an application who wishes to cease receiving copies of communications from the Office must submit a request that the correspondence cease.”
This means that unless the withdrawn attorney explicitly requests to stop receiving communications, they may continue to receive them. However, it’s important to note that the withdrawn attorney is no longer authorized to act on behalf of the application. To ensure proper handling of the application, the withdrawn attorney should request that correspondence cease, and the applicant or new representative should update the correspondence address with the USPTO.
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