How does cancellation of claims affect the date of abandonment in a patent application?

The cancellation of claims can affect the date of abandonment in a patent application as follows:

• If all pending claims are canceled, the application becomes abandoned on the date the last claim is canceled.
• This applies even if the cancellation occurs before the expiration of the period for reply.

MPEP 711.04(a) clearly states: ‘The date on which the last pending claim is canceled may be the date of abandonment.’ This means that an application with no pending claims is considered abandoned, regardless of any remaining time in the reply period.

To learn more:

• patent application
• claim cancellation
• date of abandonment
• pending claims