[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 111 (Monday, June 9, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32559-32561]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-12820]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Patent and Trademark Office


Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences Actions

ACTION: New collection; comment request.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), as part 
of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, 
invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this 
opportunity to comment on this new information collection, as required 
by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13 (44 U.S.C. 
3506(c)(2)(A)).

DATES: Written comments must be submitted on or before August 8, 2008.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
    E-mail: [email protected]. Include ``0651-00xx Board of 
Patent Appeals and Interferences Actions comment'' in the subject line 
of the message.
    Fax: 571-273-0112, marked to the attention of Susan K. Fawcett.
    Mail: Susan K. Fawcett, Records Officer, Office of the Chief 
Information Officer, Customer Information Services Group, Public 
Information Services Division, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. 
Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450. Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: 
http://www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information 
should be directed to the attention of Kimberly Jordan, Chief Trial 
Administrator, Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences, United States 
Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450; 
by telephone at 571-272-9797; or by e-mail at [email protected] with 
``Paperwork'' in the subject line.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

    The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) established 
the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences (BPAI or Board) under 35 
U.S.C. 6(b). This statute directs BPAI to ``on written appeal of an 
applicant, review adverse decisions of examiners upon applications for 
patent and shall determine priority and patentability of invention in 
interferences.'' BPAI has the authority under 35 U.S.C. 134, 135, 306, 
and 315 to review ex parte and inter partes appeals and interferences. 
In addition, 35 U.S.C. 6 establishes the membership of BPAI as the 
Director, the Deputy Director, the Commissioner for Patents, the 
Commissioner for Trademarks, and the Administrative Patent Judges, one 
of which serves as the Chief Judge and another as the Vice Chief Judge. 
Each appeal and interference is decided by a merits panel of at least 
three members of the Board.
    The Board's two main responsibilities under the statute include the 
review of ex parte appeals from adverse decisions of examiners in those 
situations where a written appeal is taken by a dissatisfied applicant, 
and the administration of interferences to ``determine priority'' (or 
decide who is the first inventor) whenever an applicant claims the same 
patentable invention that is already claimed by another applicant or 
patentee. In inter partes reexamination appeals, BPAI reviews decisions 
adverse to a patent owner or a third-party requestor.
    The USPTO published a notice of proposed rule making, ``Rules of 
Practice Before the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences in Ex 
Parte Appeals (RIN 0651-AC12)'' in the Federal Register on July 30, 
2007. The public comment period ended on September 28, 2007. In this 
proposed rule making, the USPTO proposed changes to information 
submitted to the agency by practitioners in order to process ex parte 
appeals before the BPAI.
    The agency received comments from the public concerning the burden 
of these rules on the public, in particular the new requirements that 
allow the agency to structure the information being received. In order 
to ensure that the public has opportunity to comment on the burden 
impact of the proposed rule making, the USPTO is submitting a new 
information collection request to the OMB to review these changes as 
subject to the PRA and to incorporate the new information collection 
into the agency's information collection inventory.
    The USPTO is asking that a new collection of information, entitled 
``Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences Actions'' be established. 
This collection will contain the following items:
     Appeal Brief (41.37).
     Petition for Extension of Time for Filing Paper After 
Appeal Brief (41.3 and 41.20).
     Petition to Increase Page Limit (41.3 and 41.20).
     Reply Brief (41.41).
     Request for Rehearing Before the BPAI (41.52).
    Additionally, there are two items related to BPAI activities that 
are currently covered in 0651-0031 Patent Processing (Updating). This 
collection is currently under review at OMB. It is the USPTO's 
intention to move these items out of 0651-0031 into this new collection 
once this collection is established and OMB's review of 0651-0031 is 
concluded. The following items will be moved out of 0651-0031:
     Notice of Appeal (41.31).
     Request for Oral Hearing Before the BPAI (41.47).
    BPAI's opinions and decisions for publicly available files are 
published on the USPTO Web site.
    There are no forms associated with these items. However, they are 
governed by rules in Part 41. Failure to comply with the appropriate 
rule may result in dismissal of the appeal or denial of entry of the 
paper.

II. Method of Collection

    By mail, hand delivery, or fax when applicant files the briefs, 
petitions, and requests. These papers can also be filed as attachments 
through EFS-Web.

III. Data

    OMB Number: 0651-00xx.
    Form Number(s): No forms.
    Type of Review: New information collection.
    Affected Public: Primarily business or other for-profit 
organizations.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 31,828 responses per year. In the 
future, once this proposed collection and 0651-0031 are approved by 
OMB, the USPTO expects to move the notices of appeal and requests for 
oral hearing before the BPAI into this collection. The USPTO estimates 
that this will add a minimum of 28,595 responses to this collection.
    Estimated Time Per Response: The USPTO estimates that it takes the 
public

[[Page 32560]]

approximately 5 to 30 hours to complete this information, depending on 
the brief, petition, or request. This includes the time to gather the 
necessary information, prepare the briefs, petitions, and requests, and 
submit them to the USPTO. The USPTO estimates that it takes the public 
approximately 12 minutes (0.20 hours) to complete the notices of appeal 
and requests for oral hearing before the BPAI.
    Estimated Total Annual Respondent Burden Hours: 773,895 hours. The 
USPTO estimates that once the notices of appeal and requests for oral 
hearing before the BPAI are moved into this collection, a minimum of 
5,719 hours per year will be added to the burden.
    Estimated Total Annual Respondent Cost Burden: $239,907,450. The 
USPTO believes that associate attorneys will complete these briefs, 
petitions, and requests. The professional hourly rate for associate 
attorneys in private firms is $310. Using this hourly rate, the USPTO 
estimates that the total respondent cost burden for this collection is 
$239,907,450 per year. Once the notices of appeal and requests for oral 
hearing before the BPAI are moved into this collection, the USPTO 
estimates that the annual respondent cost burden will increase by a 
minimum of $1,772,890. The USPTO believes that these items are also 
completed by associate attorneys.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                             Estimated time       Estimated         Estimated
                           Item                               for response         annual        annual  burden
                                                                 (hours)          responses           hours
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Appeal Briefs.............................................                30            23,145           694,350
Petition for Extension of Time for Filing Paper After                     15             2,298            34,470
 Brief....................................................
Petition to Increase Page Limit...........................                15             1,315            19,725
Reply Briefs..............................................                 5             4,947            24,735
Requests for Rehearing Before the BPAI....................                 5               123               615
                                                           -----------------------------------------------------
    Total.................................................  ................            31,828           773,895
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The table below show the estimated annual responses and burden 
hours that the USPTO expects will be added to this collection once the 
notice of appeal and requests for oral hearing before the BPAI are 
transferred out of 0651-0031 into this collection. These estimates are 
based on current projections and are an increase over the estimates 
currently in 0651-0031 (17,250 responses, 3,450 burden hours, and 
$1,048,800 in respondent costs). The estimates below are not being 
reported in the burden for this proposed collection at this time. The 
USPTO has included the estimates to show the public what the minimum 
expected burden will be for this collection.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                             Estimated time       Estimated
                           Item                               for response         annual       Estimated annual
                                                                (minutes)         responses       burden  hours
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notice of Appeal..........................................                12            27,630             5,526
Request for Oral Hearing Before the BPAI..................                12               965               193
 
    sTotal...............................................  ................            28,595             5,719
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Estimated Total Annual Non-hour Respondent Cost Burden: 
$12,286,831. There are postage costs and filing fees associated with 
this information collection. This collection does not have any capital 
start-up, operation, maintenance, or recordkeeping costs.
    Parties incur postage costs when submitting the various papers to 
the USPTO by mail through the United States Postal Service. The USPTO 
believes that these items will be mailed by Express Mail, using the 
Postal Service's flat rate envelope, which can accommodate varying 
submission weights. The cost of the flat rate envelope is $16.50. The 
USPTO believes that roughly half of the submissions will be filed in 
paper, with the rest filed as attachments through EFS-Web. Out of the 
total estimated 31,828 submissions, the USPTO estimates that the number 
of papers submitted to the USPTO by Express Mail is 15,983.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                            Item                             Responses  (yr)    Postage costs   Total cost  (yr)
                                                                         (a)               (b)           (a)x(b)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Appeal Briefs.............................................            11,573            $16.50       $190,955.00
Petitions for Extensions of Time for Filing Paper After                1,167             16.50         19,256.00
 Brief....................................................
Petitions to Increase Page Limit..........................               668             16.50         11,022.00
Reply Briefs..............................................             2,513             16.50         41,465.00
Requests for Rehearing Before the BPAI....................                62             16.50          1,023.00
                                                           -----------------------------------------------------
    Total.................................................            15,983  ................        263,721.00
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Therefore, the USPTO estimates that the total postage costs for 
this collection will be $263,721.
    There is also annual non-hour cost burden in the way of filing fees 
for the appeal briefs and the petitions. The reply briefs and the 
request for rehearing before the BPAI do not have filing fees 
associated with them. The USPTO estimates that the total non-hour cost 
burden associated with the filing

[[Page 32561]]

fees for this collection will be $12,023,110.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                                 Total non-hour
                           Item                              Responses (yr)      Filing fees    cost burden (yr)
                                                                         (a)               (b)         (a) x (b)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Appeal Briefs.............................................            18,337           $510.00     $9,351,870.00
Appeal Briefs (small entity)..............................             4,808            255.00      1,226,040.00
Petitions for Extension of Time for Filing Paper After                 2,298            400.00        919,200.00
 Brief....................................................
Petitions to Increase Page Limit..........................             1,315            400.00        526,000.00
Reply Briefs..............................................             4,947              0.00              0.00
Requests for Rehearing Before the BPAI....................               123              0.00              0.00
                                                           -----------------------------------------------------
        Totals............................................            31,828  ................     12,023,110.00
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The USPTO estimates that the total non-hour respondent cost burden 
for this collection, in the form of postage costs and filing fees is 
$12,286,831 per year.
    The tables below show the estimated non-hour costs related to 
postage and filing fees that the USPTO expects will be added to this 
collection once the notices of appeal and requests for oral hearing 
before the BPAI are transferred out of 0651-0031 into this collection. 
These estimates are based on current projections and are an increase 
over the total non-hour cost estimates for postage and filing fees 
($7,952,505) currently in 0651-0031 for these two items. The estimates 
shown below are not being reported in the burden for this proposed 
collection at this time. The USPTO has included the estimates to show 
the public what the minimum expected burden will be for this 
collection. The USPTO estimates that a minimum of $13,177,835 per year 
will be added to the total non-hour respondent cost burden.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                           Item                              Responses  (yr)    Postage costs   Total cost  (yr)
                                                                         (a)               (b)         (a) x (b)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notices of Appeal.........................................            27,630             $0.58        $16,025.00
Requests for Oral Hearing Before the BPAI.................               925              0.58            560.00
                                                           -----------------------------------------------------
        Total.............................................            28,595  ................         16,585.00
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                                 Total non-hour
                           Item                              Responses  (yr)     Filing fees       cost burden
                                                                                    (yr)              (yr)
                                                                         (a)               (b)         (a) x (b)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notices of Appeal.........................................            21,635           $500.00    $10,817,500.00
Notices of Appeal (small entity)..........................             5,977            250.00      1,494,250.00
Requests for Oral Hearing Before the BPAI.................               734          1,000.00        734,000.00
Requests for Oral Hearing Before the BPAI (small entity)..               231            500.00        115,500.00
                                                           -----------------------------------------------------
        Total.............................................            28,577  ................     13,161,250.00
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

IV. Request for Comments

    Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the agency, including whether the information shall have practical 
utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden 
(including hours and cost) of the proposed collection of information; 
(c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the 
collection of information on respondents, including through the use of 
automated collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology.
    Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized or 
included in the request for OMB approval of this information 
collection; they also will become a matter of public record.
Dated: June 3, 2008.

Susan K. Fawcett,
Records Officer, USPTO, Office of the Chief Information Officer, 
Customer Information Services Group, Public Information Services 
Division.
[FR Doc. E8-12820 Filed 6-6-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-16-P