The Manual of Patent Examining Procedure (MPEP) is published by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for use by patent attorneys and agents and patent examiners. It describes all of the laws and regulations that must be followed in the examination of U.S. patent applications, and articulates their application to an enormous variety of different situations. The MPEP is based on Chapter 37 (Intellectual Property Regulations) of the Code of Federal Regulations, which derives its authority from Title 35 (Patents) of the United States Code.
The MPEP is used extensively by patent attorneys and agents to help make sure they follow the proper USPTO regulations. The USPTO registration examination tests knowledge of the MPEP and the underlying laws and regulations.
The MPEP is available in both PDF and HTML versions. The current version of the MPEP is the 8th Edition, Revision 7, which was released in July 2008. The MPEP has traditionally been available in paper form, but electronic versions are now used more often, particularly because an applicant may consult the electronic versions only while taking the USPTO registration examination, or the patent bar examination. Although the 8th Edition, Revision 7 of the MPEP is available, the patent bar examination still tests the 8th Edition, Revision 4, which was released in October 2005.[1]
The MPEP provides guidance to members of the public on how to present persuasive arguments to a patent examiner as to why a patent should be granted on a given patent application. See in particular Chapter 2100 on patentability.
See also
- United States Patents Quarterly (USPQ)
- Compendium II: Copyright Office Practices
- Trademark Manual of Examining Procedure (TMEP)
- Manual of Patent Office Practice (MOPOP) (Canadian patent law)
- Guidelines for Examination in the European Patent Office
- United States Patent Classification
References
External links
- Manual of Patent Examining Procedure (MPEP) on the USPTO web site
- Search or Browse the MPEP
- MPEP as one PDF
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This page was last modified on 24 October 2009 at 16:06.
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