37 CFR 1.59 — Expungement of information or copy of papers in application file
Ninth Edition, Revision 01.2024
- (a)
- (1) Information in an application will not be expunged, except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section or § 41.7(a) or § 42.7(a) of this title.
- (2) Information forming part of the original disclosure ( i.e., written specification including the claims, drawings, and any preliminary amendment present on the filing date of the application) will not be expunged from the application file.
- (b) An applicant may request that the Office expunge information, other than what is excluded by paragraph (a)(2) of this section, by filing a petition under this paragraph. Any petition to expunge information from an application must include the fee set forth in § 1.17(g) and establish to the satisfaction of the Director that the expungement of the information is appropriate in which case a notice granting the petition for expungement will be provided.
- (c) Upon request by an applicant and payment of the fee specified in § 1.19(b) , the Office will furnish copies of an application, unless the application has been disposed of ( see §§ 1.53(e), (f), and (g) ). The Office cannot provide or certify copies of an application that has been disposed of.
[48 FR 2696, Jan. 20, 1983, effective Feb. 27, 1983; 49 FR 554, Jan. 4, 1984, effective Apr. 1, 1984; 49 FR 48416, Dec. 12, 1984, effective Feb. 11, 1985; 50 FR 23123, May 31, 1985, effective Feb. 11, 1985; revised, 60 FR 20195, Apr. 25, 1995, effective June 8, 1995; revised, 62 FR 53132, Oct. 10, 1997, effective Dec. 1, 1997; para. (b) revised, 65 FR 54604, Sept. 8, 2000, effective Nov. 7, 2000; para. (b) revised, 68 FR 14332, Mar. 25, 2003, effective May 1, 2003; revised, 68 FR 38611, June 30, 2003, effective July 30, 2003; para. (a)(1) revised, 69 FR 49959, Aug. 12, 2004, effective Sept. 13, 2004; para. (b) revised, 69 FR 56481, Sept. 21, 2004, effective Nov. 22, 2004; para. (a)(1) revised, 77 FR 46615, Aug. 6, 2012, effective Sept. 16, 2012; para. (a)(2) revised, 77 FR 48776, Aug. 14, 2012, effective Sept. 16, 2012]
Cited authority
Cited by
- 1002.02(b) Petitions and Requests Decided by the Deputy Commissioner Who Oversees the Office of Petitions or Assigned Staff in the Office of Petitions, the Office of Patent Legal Administration and the MPEP Staff Office
- 1002.02(c) Petitions and Requests Decided by the Technology Center Directors
- 1002.02(c)(4) Petitions Decided in the Central Reexamination Unit
- 1416 No Physical Surrender of Original Patent
- 502.05 Correspondence Transmitted by EFS-Web
- 503 Application Number and Filing Receipt
- 719.01 Papers in Image File Wrapper
- 724.02 Method of Submitting Trade Secret, Proprietary, and/or Protective Order Materials
- 724.04 Office Treatment and Handling of Materials Submitted Under MPEP § 724.02
- 724.04(a) Materials Submitted in an Application Covered by 35 U.S.C. 122
- 724.04(b) Materials Submitted in Reissue Applications Open to the Public Under 37 CFR 1.11(b)
- 724.04(c) Materials Submitted in Reexamination File Open to the Public Under 37 CFR 1.11(d)
- 724.05 Petition To Expunge Information or Copy of Papers in Application File
- 724.06 Handling of Petitions To Expunge Information or Copy of Papers in Application File
- 37 CFR 1.17 Patent application and reexamination processing fees