How does restriction practice differ from patentability report practice?
Restriction practice and patentability report practice are two distinct procedures in patent examination. Restriction practice involves requiring an applicant to limit their application to a single invention when multiple inventions are claimed. On the other hand, patentability report practice is used to handle complex cases where restriction cannot be properly required.
As stated in MPEP § 807:
“Patentability report practice ( MPEP § 705 ), has no effect upon, and does not modify in any way, the practice of restriction, being designed merely to facilitate the handling of cases in which restriction cannot properly be required.”
This means that while both practices are part of the patent examination process, they serve different purposes and do not influence each other.
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