Filing dates

A description or explanation of the background of the invention, N, may also be provided by the inventor. This background section discusses previous developments of inventors working in the same area of technology and may also Hst pubHcations or patents that have discussed these developments and predate the filing date of the patent appUcation. The background section may also point to deficiencies in the prior developments that the inventor intends to overcome. 

To maintain the benefit of the provisional appHcation filing date, a regular utiHty appHcation must be filed during the pendency of the provisional appHcation, ie, within one year of its filing date, and must include at least one inventor in common with the provisional appHcation. The filing of a... 

An interference is a contested action in the U.S. PTO to determine inventorship between two or more patent appHcants or between at least one patentee and one or more patent appHcants. The principal contest in an interference concerns the right to claim the invention. The interference action results from U.S. law, which awards patents to the first inventor, generally irrespective of patent appHcation filing date. In the simplest situation, an interference occurs when a pending appHcation discloses and claims the same invention which is claimed in at least one other copending appHcation or issued patent. 

In the PCT examination process, national patent applications may be filed at the end of Chapter I (18 months from the home appHcation filing date), or at the end of Chapter II (30 months from the home appHcation filing date). If the examination of the U.S. home appHcation ends successfully before completion of the examination of the counterpart appHcation in PCT Chapter I, the PCT AppHcant may file national appHcations including the claims examined and allowed by the U.S. PTO without proceeding to PCT Chapter II processing. A brief timeline of patent appHcation examination under the PCT is provided in Table I. 

United States periodic maintenance payments required for granted patents having file dates later than Dec. 12,1980... 

United States switch to 20-year term from file date may begin publishing unexamined appHcations... 

Class III Premarket Approval. Similar to a new dmg approval, a premarket approval grants the appHcant a Hcense to market a specific weU-characterized device. These devices are subject to the requirements of Section 515 of the Eood, Dmg, and Cosmetic Act. A post-amendment device is a device put ia commercial distribution after May 28, 1976. If it is not substantially equivalent to a preamendment device it is automatically ia Class 111, and a premarket approval appHcation (PMA) is required. The appHcation must iaclude reports of preclinical and clinical studies done ia support of claims of safety and efficacy as well as any labeling claims made for the device. Once the PMA is submitted, the PDA determines whether the appHcation iacludes the required information. If the PMA is suitable for scientific review, the PDA has 180 days from the filing date to approve or deny the appHcation. Polybutester, polydioxanone, polyglyconate, and ePTPE sutures are all regulated as Class 111 devices. 

To receive a filing date, an appHcation made on the basis of intent-to-use must include "a claim of bona fide intention to use the mark in commerce," a description of the goods upon or in connection with which the appHcant has the intention to use the mark and the mode and manner in which it is to be used, and a statement that the appHcant is entitled to use the mark and that, to the best of the appHcant s knowledge, no other person or entity has the right to use the mark or a confusingly similar mark. A drawing of the mark must be submitted with the appHcation. 

Gregory J. Ward and Bryan C. Blanchard, to Solutia Inc., US Patent Application Serial No. 10/327,765, filing date December 23, 2002. 

Upon receipt of a marketing authorization application under centralized procedures, the EMEA staff carry out an initial appraisal to ensure that it is complete and has been compiled in accordance with the appropriate EU guidelines (Box 4.4). This appraisal must be completed within 10 days, at which time (if the application is in order), it is given a filing date. The sponsor also pays an appropriate fee. The EMEA then has 210 days to consider the application. In the case of human drugs, the application immediately comes before the CPMP (which convenes for 2-3 days each month). 

Another important item for a patent is the priority date. The priority date is established when a patent application is filed for the first time. If the invention is known before this date, then the patent is not granted. Most countries are first-to-file countries, which means that the patent is awarded to the person with the earliest filing date. In the United States, patents are awarded to the first person to invent. The inventor can attempt to show the invention was made before another person s filing date to claim priority. 

Recommendation 1 Permit only one automatic 30-month stay per drug product per ANDA to resolve infringement disputes over patents listed in the Orange Book prior to the filing date of the generic applicant s ANDA. 

A priority dates is the earliest filing date to which the patent is entitled. 

A continuation patent is one filed during the pendency of another, earlier patent application, which contains the same disclosure as the earlier application. The continuation refers back to the earlier application and receives the benefit of its earlier filing date for purposes of identifying prior art and determining patentability. 35 U.S.C. 120 Transco Prods., Inc. v. Performance Contr., Inc., 38 F.3d 551, 555-56 (Fed. Cir. 1994). 

The plan will eventually prescribe a likely filing date for a marketing authorisation application (MAA) (product hcence). This date is vital and when the plan becomes public information, any slippage in the date is likely to impact on the share price of the company. Accordingly, senior members of the company must be confident that the date can be met. There will always be pressure to bring the date forward but this has a cost in resources, and risks damaging credibility with investors if the accelerated timelines cannot be met. 

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