Patent Reform Hearing

Patent Reform: Protecting Innovation and Entrepreneurship, the March 19, 2015 hearing before the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, is now available without charge online. In his opening statement Chairman David Vitter, U.S. Senator from Louisiana, stated:

We have heard pleas from businesses across the board that the patent system is increasingly becoming a forum for financial speculation and litigation rather than innovation. American innovators and small businesses across the country are being forced to divert critical resources to defend themselves against vague claims of patent infringement, resulting in substantial drains on our economy.

Vitter goes on to emphasize that our patent system fuels the economy and that patent reform discussion must include "a detailed analysis of how legislation would further impact small business, investors, and universities."

USPTO Texas Regional Inventors Conference

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) will host its first Texas Regional Inventors Conference on  January 29, 2016, at its Texas Regional Office in Dallas, Texas.
Representatives from the Texas Regional Office and the USPTO headquarters in Alexandria, Virginia will be on hand to conduct an all-day workshop for inventors and entrepreneurs. This free event will provide valuable information about various types of intellectual property protection, the patent process, patent searching, electronic filing, and various public and private resources available to inventors and entrepreneurs.

There is no fee to register, but space is limited to registered 50 attendees. To register, visit www.uspto-texas-regional-inventor-conference.eventbrite.com 

For additional information or questions about the conference, please call 469-295-9000 or email to Texas Regional USPTO Events .

Agenda

09:30 AM - 10:00 AM      Registration and Mingle
10:00 AM - 10:15 AM      Welcome Remark, Regional Director
10:15 AM - 10:45 AM      IP- Overview – Speaker from Alexandria
10:45 AM - 11:15 AM      Patent Process - Speaker from Alexandria
11:15 AM - 11:30 AM      Break
11:30 AM - 12:00 PM       Searching- Speaker from the Regional Office
12:00 PM - 01:00 PM       Lunch on your own
01:00 PM - 01:30 PM       Application filing – Speaker from Alexandria                      
01:30 PM - 02:00 PM       Pro-Se application vs Counsel - Local Attorney
02:00 PM - 02:30 PM       Pro-Bono program
02:30 PM - 02:45 PM       Break
02:45 PM - 03:15 PM       Inventor Resources at the USPTO- Speaker from the Regional Office
03:15 PM - 03:45 PM       Panel/Open forum
04:00 PM - 05:00 PM       One-on-one consultation with USPTO Officials (20 minute sessions)

See the announcement on USPTO's website:
http://www.uspto.gov/about-us/events/uspto-texas-regional-inventors-conference

Director of New Dallas Regional Office

In December 2015 engineer and intellectual property attorney Hope Shimabuku became the director of the new regional office in Dallas. See information about her background at http://www.uspto.gov/about-us/uspto-locations/dallas-tx/hope-shimabuku .

Trademark: Waiver of Certain Trademark Fee Rules for December 22-27, 2015

All USPTO online systems, including the Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS), have been restored as of December 28, 2015 following the major power outage at USPTO headquarters that occurred December 22, 2015.

Pursuant to 37 C.F.R. § 2.148, the Director waives the requirements under 37 C.F.R. §2.22 (b)(1)(i)-(viii) and 2.23(b)(1)(i)-(viii) in applications based on TEAS Plus or TEAS RF to submit the identified communications “through TEAS” for the period of December 22, 2015 through December 27, 2015. Communications submitted via alternative filing methods during that period will not incur the additional processing fee under §§ 2.22(c) or 2.23(c) of $50.00 per class, as set forth in § 2.6(a)(1)(v).

The Director also waives the requirement under 37 C.F.R. § 2.6(a)(5)(i) regarding applications for renewal submitted via alternative filing methods (“on paper”) between December 22, 2015 and December 27, 2015. Further, the Director waives the requirement of 37 C.F.R. §2.6(a)(5)(ii) relating to filings for renewal as to the requirement for such filings to be “through TEAS.” Thus, the applicable fee for all applications for renewal of a registration filed between December 22, 2015 and December 27, 2015 is $300.

USPTO to Host Program about PTAB in Dallas on January 7, 2016

The Dallas USPTO is hosting a program in its Regional Office on Thursday, January 7th p.m. from 9 to 11:30 a.m. local time focused on tips and strategies for filing and managing ex parte appeals and AIA trials.
Specifically, the agency will begin the program with a tour of the new office followed by an overview of PTAB operations. Then, attendees may participate in small break-out sessions lead by local administrative patent judges to discuss (1) AIA trials; (2) ex parte appeals; (3) successful briefing; and (4) oral advocacy skills. Attendees also will have the opportunity to meet the new Regional Director Hope Shimabuku, on her first day at the Dallas USPTO.
Please meet in the lobby of the Dallas USPTO, Terminal Federal Building Annex, 207 South Houston Street, Dallas, TX, and you will be directed from there.
The event is free and open to the public. Space is limited. To RSVP, please send an email to dallas@uspto.gov.
For additional programming and services available through the Dallas USPTO, please visit http://www.uspto.gov/about-us/uspto-locations/dallas-texas