By Christopher P. Singer --
In a notice published in the Federal Register on Wednesday, July 1, 2009 (74 Fed. Reg. 31372), the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office published rule changes relating to amendment practice in PCT applications, which took effect on July 1, 2009. The revision is specific to 37 C.F.R. § 1.485 (corresponding to amended PCT Rule 66.8), which will be amended to recite:
The applicant may make amendments at the time of filing the Demand. The applicant may also make amendments within the time limit set by the International Preliminary Examining Authority for reply to any notification under § 1.484(b) or to any written opinion. Any such amendments must be made in accordance with PCT Rule 66.8.
Under the prior PCT Regulations relating to amendment procedure, applicants were required to submit replacement pages for only those pages that contained revisions. Under the new Regulations, applicants are required to submit a complete set of the claims when any amendment is made to one or more claims.
Comments