English
USPTO Post Grant Fees Cut on March 19th
Fee Setting Authority Decreases Post Grant Costs
Based upon the fee setting authority provided in Section 10 of the America Invents Act (AIA), the USPTO post grant filing fees will be downwardly adjusted for both patent reexamination and the patentability trial proceedings of the Patent Trial & Appeal Board (PTAB). The new fees are discounted from the rates that became effective last September 16th, and take effect tomorrow, March 19th. (final rules here)
The fees for PTAB proceedings will be broken up into petition and trial phases. The apportionment enables the office to more precisely calibrate costs so that refunds may be provided, where appropriate. The petition portion of the fees correspond to the cost of considering the petition filing only. The trial portion of the fees corresponds to the cost of conducting the trial. The fees for patent reexamiantion will decrease for all filers, but will drop by 60-80% for those requesters qualifying as small and micro entities.
A more detailed explanation of the fee changes is provided below.
Read the rest of this entry »
