Oh No! The USPTO rejected your Patent Application, Now what?

Published: Wed, 06/02/21

What an accomplished feeling to learn that your novelty search revealed that your invention is patentable. However, will the USPTO agree? Hopefully, they will eventually grant you a patent, but anticipate the time it takes for this to happen and be prepared for the back and forth process of responding to Office Actions.

When you file a patent application at the USPTO, it’s assigned to a Patent Examiner about 3-4 years after filing the application. The Examiner will review the application for informalities and also conduct a prior art search to determine if the invention is patentable. A good prior art search conducted prior to filing the application can help your attorney to draft a strong patent application with patentable claims and it can also help you to anticipate any rejections. Once the application is rejected, the Applicant is given 3 months to respond to the Office Action. At this time, the Applicant can amend their claims and provide arguments to show why the invention is patentable. The response may not necessarily convince the Examiner the first time, but don’t give up! A skilled and qualified Patent Attorney can help you to interpret the Office Action and the Attorney can help you to create an action plan about how to overcome the rejection. If you hit a dead end with the Examiner, you can file an appeal and present your arguments to a panel of USPTO Judges.

Simply put, you can anticipate receiving an office action from the USPTO, but don’t be discouraged. Anything worth having takes time!

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US Federal Trademark Search

It's highly recommended to search a federal trademark prior to filing a trademark application with the USPTO. This search is usually conducted by a trademark attorney that is familiar with what would be considered a likelihood of confusion. They will provide you with a detailed report that analyzes the potential for your trademark to actually become a registration as well as defining why not.

These companies do charge you and their fees can range quite a bit. Yet, many people feel that knowing that their trademark is actually likely to register is worth this additional cost. In fact, Attorney Evans offers this service and the Firm has saved several clients thousands of dollars by preventing them from attempting to use a mark that already exist.

Although paying for this type of a search should be something you consider, take the time beforehand to do the free searches yourself. This can help to clear the way for any easily found problems so that when you do pay for a search, it is going to be one that comes back with the best possible results.

Contact The Law Firm of Andrea Hence Evans, LLC to schedule a consultation to review your patent, trademark and copyright options.

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ABOUT THE LAW FIRM OF

ANDREA HENCE EVANS, LLC

The Law Firm of Andrea Hence Evans, LLC is your one stop shop to intellectual property protection. The Firm provides patent, trademark and copyright legal services. Working as a former Patent Examiner and Trademark Examining Attorney at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), Evans uses her education, legal skills, resources, training and hands-on USPTO experience to provide quality services at reasonable rates.

The Firm currently represents a range of clients all over the world.

Please Note: This practice is limited exclusively to federal intellectual property matters in all 50 states. Evans is a member of the Texas Bar, USPTO Bar and the Supreme Court Bar.

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