After considering any patent owner response to an ACP, and any third party requester written comments thereto, or the expiration of the time for patent owner to file a response and no response has been filed, the examiner will either re-open prosecution if necessary, or issue a Right of Appeal Notice (RAN). The RAN sets time periods in which the parties may appeal to the BPAI. The RAN also closes prosecution. Any amendment filed after a RAN will not be entered [MPEP 2673.02]. It is possible for the Office to issue a RAN after a patent owner responds to the initial Office action on patentability if both parties stipulate that the issues are appropriate for a final rejection and or a final patentability determination.
Terms and Concepts
- Action Closing Prosecution (ACP)
- Central Reexamination Unit (CRU)
- Certificate of Reexamination
- Claim Construction
- Cumulative Effect
- Damages
- Decision Makers
- Director-Initiated Ex Parte
- District Court Litigation
- Duty of Disclosure
- Ex Parte Reexamination
- Extensions of Time
- Inequitable Conduct
- Inter Partes Reexamination
- KSR v. Teleflex (KSR)
- Mergers of Proceedings
- Multiple Proceedings
- Notice of Intent (NIRC)
- Order Granting or Denying
- Page Limits
- Parallel Universe
- Pendency
- Pending Reexamination
- Protective Orders
- Real Party in Interest
- Reexamination
- Request for Reexamination
- Request Requirements
- Right of Appeal Notice (RAN)
- Risks for Accused Infringers
- Scope of Proceedings
- Settlement
- Standard of Review
- Stays
- Substantial New Question (SNQ)
- Validity Challenges
- Willfulness