[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 79 (Wednesday, April 26, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19237-19238]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-08420]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Patent and Trademark Office


Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request; Patent Trial Appeal 
Board (PTAB) Actions

    The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USTPO) will submit 
to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for clearance the 
following proposal for collection of information under the provisions 
of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35).
    Agency: United States Patent and Trademark Office, Commerce.
    Title: Patent Trial Appeal Board (PTAB) Actions.
    OMB Control Number: 0651-0063.
    Form Number(s): None.
    Type of Request: Revision of a currently existing collection.
    Number of Respondents: 23,660.
    Average Hours per Response: Between 2 and 32 hours, depending upon 
the instrument used.
    Burden Hours: 555,098 hours.
    Cost Burden: $46,049,937.65.
    Needs and Uses: The Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB or Board) 
is established by statute under 35 U.S.C. 6. This statute directs that 
PTAB ``shall 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.'' PTAB has 
the authority, under pre-AIA sections of the Patent Act, i.e., 35 
U.S.C. 134, 135, 306, and 315, to decide ex parte and inter partes 
appeals and interferences. The membership of the Board is

[[Page 19238]]

established under 35 U.S.C. 6. This collection permits applicants to 
prepare appeal and reply briefs which set forth the claims, issues, and 
arguments on appeal to the PTAB and permits applicants to file 
amendments to cancel pending, rejected claims that they do not wish to 
be considered on appeal by the Board. Applicants may request that the 
PTAB reconsider its decision by filing a request for rehearing before 
the PTAB. Parties may also petition the Chief Administrative Patent 
Judge on matters pending before the Board. The PTAB uses the 
information to aid in rendering a decision on the claims, issues, and 
arguments submitted by the applicant, to determine which claims are on 
appeal, to decide whether to grant or deny a request for 
reconsideration of a decision, and to determine whether the necessary 
information has been provided to grant the petition. There are no forms 
associated with the items in this collection; however, they are 
governed by the rules in Part 41 and failure to comply with the 
appropriate rule may result in the dismissal of the appeal or denial of 
entry of the paper.
    Affected Public: Businesses or other for-profits; not-for-profit 
institutions.
    Frequency: On occasion.
    Respondent's Obligation: Required to Obtain or Retain Benefits.
    OMB Desk Officer: Nicholas A. Fraser, email: 
[email protected].
    Once submitted, the request will be publicly available in 
electronic format through reginfo.gov. Follow the instructions to view 
Department of Commerce collections currently under review by OMB.
    Further information can be obtained by:
     Email: [email protected]. Include ``0651-
0063 copy request'' in the subject line of the message.
     Mail: Marcie Lovett, Records and Information Governance 
Division Director, Office of the Chief Technology Officer, United 
States Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 
22313-1450.
    Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information 
collection should be sent on or before May 26, 2017 to Nicholas A. 
Fraser, OMB Desk Officer, via email to [email protected], 
or by fax to 202-395-5167, marked to the attention of Nicholas A. 
Fraser.

    Dated: April 14, 2017.
Marcie Lovett,
Records and Information Governance Division Director, OCTO, United 
States Patent and Trademark Office.
[FR Doc. 2017-08420 Filed 4-25-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-16-P