To see the 2021 US utility patent toteboard, click here.
Welcome developments with DAS – Denmark (correction)
Several alert readers have pointed out to me a typographical error in yesterday’s blog article Welcome developments with DAS – Denmark. I incorrectly indicated that DPTO’s effective date for becoming an Accessing Office and a Depositing Office for utility models was September 17, 2021. The correct date was November 30, 2021. The first kind reader to spot this error and to report it to me was Debra Collier, located in Switzerland. Prompted by her I have corrected the blog article. Thank you to Ms. Collier!
Learn about 92bis changes
Sign up to attend a webinar on February 10, 2022, at 3 p.m. (Central European Time) about Best practices for recording of changes (Rule 92bis).
The speakers will be:
- Matthias Reischle-Park, Deputy Director, PCT Legal and User Relations Division
- Mineko Mohri, Legal Officer, PCT Legal and User Support Section, PCT Legal and User Relations Division
To register, click here.
Welcome developments with DAS – Georgia
This is a busy time for good news about DAS.
The last time I blogged about Georgia and DAS was on March 20, 2019 (see article). At that time, the news was that Georgia had joined the DAS system.
Now the news is that Georgia has joined the DAS system as an Accessing Office and as a Depositing Office with respect to trademark applications. This took effect as of September 17, 2021.
Welcome developments with DAS – Denmark
(Corrected on February 3, 2022 to show that the effective date is November 30, 2021, not September 17, 2021.)
This is a busy time for good news about DAS. One piece of good news about DAS is that the Danish Patent and Trademark Office (DPTO) became an Accessing Office and a Depositing Office in DAS for utility model applications on November 30, 2021.
DPTO was already a Depositing Office for national patent applications and RO/DK was already a Depositing Office for PCT applications. And DPTO was already an Accessing Office for national patent applications. The big news here is that DPTO recently became both an Accessing Office and a Depositing Office for utility model applications.
This offers a reminder for those readers who are perhaps not as familiar with utility models as with other forms of intellectual property protection. It reminds us that Denmark offers utility model protection. WIPO has a very helpful web page that discusses utility models and lists the seventy-six Offices where utility model protection is available.
- Albania
- Antigua and Barbuda
- Argentina
- Armenia
- Australia
- Austria
- Belarus
- Belize
- Botswana
- Brazil
- Bulgaria
- Chile
- China
- Costa Rica
- Croatia
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Dominica
- Dominican Republic
- Egypt
- El Salvador
- Estonia
- Ethiopia
- Finland
- France
- Georgia
- Germany
- Ghana
- Greece
- Guatemala
- Honduras
- Hungary
- Indonesia
- Ireland
- Italy
- Japan
- Kazakhstan
- Kenya
- Kyrgyzstan
- Lao People’s Democratic Republic
- Malaysia
- Mexico
- Mongolia
- Mozambique
- Oman
- Namibia
- Nicaragua
- Panama
- Paraguay
- Peru
- Philippines
- Poland
- Portugal
- Republic of Korea
- Republic of Moldova
- Romania
- Russian Federation
- Serbia
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- Spain
- Swaziland
- Tanzania
- Thailand
- Tonga
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Turkey
- Uganda
- Ukraine
- United Arab Emirates
- Uruguay
- Uzbekistan
- Viet Nam
- ARIPO
- OAPI
- Andean Community
Welcome developments with DAS – Canada
This is a busy time for good news about DAS. One piece of good news about DAS is that the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) became a Depositing Office in DAS for patent applications on February 1, 2022.
CIPO was already a Depositing Office for national industrial design applications. There are actually two distinct pieces of good news about this development on February 1, 2022:
- CIPO became a Depositing Office for national patent applications
- RO/CA became a Depositing Office for PCT patent applications.
Welcome developments with DAS – Ireland
This is a busy time for good news about DAS. One piece of good news about DAS is that the Intellectual Property Office of Ireland will become an Accessing Office in DAS on February 17, 2022. It will participate as an Accessing Office with respect to the following:
- National industrial design applications
- National patent applications
- National trademark applications
- National utility model applications
- PCT international applications
Who should attend the SLW Institute 2022 Virtual PCT Training Seminar?
By now I am astonished (in a good way) to see that more than 1300 people have registered so far for this series of fifteen webinars about the Patent Cooperation Treaty, a series that will commence on Tuesday, February 8, 2022.
My first topic for this blog article are a couple of related questions about this webinar series that came in the other day from a first loyal reader. He asked:
Is this geared more towards attorneys (i.e., strategic considerations) or paralegals (e.g., filing requirements)? If for attorneys, is it for newer attorneys not familiar with the PCT, or would someone with 25+ years of experience benefit?
A second topic for this blog article is a question that came in from a second loyal reader located outside of the US. She asked:
Will your presentations be focused on considerations that apply only to US practice and options and choices available only to US applicants? Can you let me know which portions to skip if they will not be of interest to me as a non-US filer?
These are all really good questions. I will try to answer these questions as best I can in this blog article. Continue reading “Who should attend the SLW Institute 2022 Virtual PCT Training Seminar?”
Five days remaining to hand in your numbers for the 2021 Tote Boards
Hello Folks. There are five days remaining to hand in your numbers for the 2021 Tote Boards.
Every year, after the Tote Boards get finished and published, an email message will arrive from some law firm that did not hand in its numbers on time. The law firm begs to please be included in one or another of the Tote Boards. The result of course, is that some other firm that was, say, listed in third place in one of the Tote Boards might now end up in fourth place. But that firm might already have posted on their web site that they had earned third place on a Tote Board!
The way to avoid such problems of course is simply for you to hand in your numbers before the closing date. This year, the closing date will be Wednesday, February 2, 2022. That is five days from now. Please get your numbers in by the close of business on Wednesday, February, 2022. To hand in your numbers, click here.
Progress with the 2021 Tote Boards
Two business days have passed since I announced the opening of the opportunity for firms to hand in their numbers for the 2021 Tote Boards. You can see the past tote boards here. These are the listings of law firms, ranked according to which firms obtained how many patents and trademarks registrations for their clients in the previous calendar year.
In these first two business days we have received reports from about two dozen firms.
Clearly there are quite a few firms that have not yet handed in their numbers.
As a reminder, the questionnaires will close on Wednesday, February 2, 2022. If you have not yet handed in your firm’s numbers, please do so right away. There is no good reason to foot-drag on handing in your numbers.
To hand in your numbers, click here.