How are materials submitted under MPEP § 724.02 treated in reissue applications open to the public?

This page is an FAQ based on guidance 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.

Materials submitted under MPEP § 724.02 in reissue applications open to the public under 37 CFR 1.11(b) are treated as follows:

• The materials are kept separate from the reissue application file and are not publicly available until a determination is made regarding their materiality to patentability.
• They will only be released to the public if no petition to expunge was filed before a notice of allowability or abandonment, or if such a petition was denied.
• The examiner reviews the file for any pending petitions to expunge before issuing notices of abandonment or allowability.
• If the information is found to be material to patentability, it becomes a permanent part of the public file.
• If not material, the petition to expunge is granted, and the information is expunged.

As stated in the MPEP: “Materials submitted under MPEP § 724.02 will only be released to the public with any other application papers if no petition to expunge (37 CFR 1.59) was filed prior to the mailing of a notice of allowability or notice of abandonment, or if a petition to expunge was filed and the petition was denied.”