13
/ March
2012
USPTO reducing number of unexamined patent cases
Just like her predecessor, USPTO Patent Commissioner Peggy Focarino has focused on reducing the number of unexamined patent cases, that is, cases that have not yet received a first action on merits (FAOM), notes Dennis Crouch in his blog www.patentlyo.com.
“In the past year, the number of unexamined applications has dropped by about 10% and is in steady decline,” Crouch notes. Moreover, the USPTO predicts that applications filed today will receive an action within 17 months as opposed to today's average of 23 months. IP Blog notes that shorter approval times would boost value and competitors would have less time to react.