Q) Issue fee transmittal form – XYZ Company (10.03.38p/4.03.11p)

by admin on April 7, 2010 · 5 comments

in Uncategorized

Recent test takers report question #11 from the October 2003 (pm) exam is in the Patent Bar database of tested questions.

11. A registered practitioner properly recorded an assignment document for application A identifying XYZ Company as the assignee. The document assigns to XYZ Company the “subject matter claimed in Application A.” A proper restriction requirement was made by a primary examiner in application A between two distinct inventions, and the practitioner elected to prosecute one of the inventions. Application A was prosecuted, and later became abandoned. Before the abandonment date of application A, the practitioner filed a complete application B as a proper divisional application of application A. Application B claimed the nonelected invention of Application A, and was published as a U.S. application publication. XYZ Company remains the assignee of application A. What must the practitioner do in accordance with the USPTO rules and the procedures set forth in the MPEP to ensure that XYZ Company is listed as the assignee on the face of any patent issuing from application B?
(A) File a proper assignment document in application B identifying XYZ Company as the assignee.
(B) File a proper assignment document in application B identifying XYZ Company as the assignee, and confirm that USPTO’s bibliographic data for application B identifies XYZ Company as the assignee by checking the filing receipt for application B, the U.S. application publication of application B, or the USPTO’s Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system data for application B, depending on when the practitioner filed the assignment document in application B.
(C) Confirm that XYZ Company is identified as the assignee on the U.S. application publication of application B.
(D) File a proper assignment document in application B identifying XYZ Company as the assignee, and confirm that XYZ Company is identified as the assignee on the U.S. application publication of application B.
(E) Upon allowance of application B, the practitioner must identify XYZ Company as the assignee in the appropriate space on the Issue Fee Transmittal form for specifying the assignee for application B.


ANSWER: (E) is the most correct answer. See MPEP §§ 306 and 307. MPEP § 306 states, “In the case of a division or continuation application, a prior assignment recorded against the original application is applied to the division or continuation application because the assignment recorded against the original application gives the assignee rights to the subject matter common to both applications.” MPEP § 307 states, “Irrespective of whether the assignee participates in the prosecution of the application, the patent issues to the assignee if so indicated on the Issue Fee Transmittal form PTOL-85B. Unless an assignee’s name and address are identified in item 3 of the Issue Fee Transmittal form PTOL-85B, the patent will issue to the applicant. Assignment data printed on the patent will be based solely on the information so supplied.” A new assignment document need not be recorded for a divisional or continuation application where the assignment recorded in the parent application remains the same. Accordingly, answers (A), (B) and (D) are incorrect. In addition, (A), (B) and (D) are incorrect because unless an assignee’s name and address are identified in item 3 of PTOL-85B, the patent will issued to the application and the assignee information, even if recorded, will not appear on the patent. (C) is incorrect for the same reason. (B) is also incorrect. There is no connection between the filing receipt, PAIR or the patent application publication and the recorded assignment. Assignment data is reflected on the filing receipt, PAIR, or a patent application publication when applicant includes assignment information for purposes of publication of the application on the transmittal letter. Assignment data printed on the patent will be based solely on the information supplied on the Issue Fee Transmittal Form PTOL-85B. See MPEP §§ 1309 and 1481. Accordingly, answer (E) is correct and answer (C) is incorrect.
1 BobNo Gravatar August 3, 2011 at 2:16 am

Got this on 8/2/11

2 ntlNo Gravatar September 7, 2011 at 8:47 am

Got this one on 09/06/11.

3 RobbieNo Gravatar September 10, 2011 at 3:53 pm

I take the exam in two days (it will be my 2nd attempt). I’m praying for about 70 repeats like this one! :o)

4 RemandedNo Gravatar September 18, 2011 at 8:18 pm

Got this verbatim today, 18 September 2011.

5 patentgeekchickNo Gravatar September 22, 2011 at 8:17 pm

Got this 9.22.11

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