2013 Protests Involving Issues of Fraud, Inequitable Conduct, and/or Violation of Duty of Disclosure [R-08.2017]
37 CFR 1.291 permits protests by the public against pending applications.
Submissions under 37 CFR 1.291 are not limited to prior art documents such as patents and publications, but are intended to include any information, which in the protestor’s opinion, would make or have made the grant of the patent improper (see MPEP § 1901.02). This includes, of course, information indicating the presence of “fraud” or “inequitable conduct” or “violation of the duty of disclosure,” which will be entered in the application file, generally without comment on the inequitable conduct issues raised in it.
Protests should be in conformance with 37 CFR 1.291(a) and (b), and include a statement of the alleged facts involved, the point or points to be reviewed, and the action requested. Any briefs or memoranda in support of the petition, and any affidavits, declarations, depositions, exhibits, or other material in support of the alleged facts, should accompany the protest.
