MPEP § 2760 — MPEP § 2760
Current through: 2022-07-01

2760-Trade Secret, Confidential, and Protective Order Material 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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 Manual of Patent Examining Procedure 

 Chapter 2700 

 Section 2760 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 2760 Trade Secret, Confidential, and Protective Order
 Material [R-01.2024]
 

 There is no provision in the statute or the rules for withholding from the
 public any information that is submitted to the Office or the regulatory agency relating to
 an application for patent term extension. While one submitting such materials to the Office
 in relation to a pending application for patent term extension must generally assume that
 such materials will be made of record in the file and be made public, the Office is not
 unmindful of the difficulties this sometimes imposes. Proprietary or trade secret
 information should be submitted generally in accordance with the procedures set forth in
 MPEP §
 724.02 . If the USPTO receives a submission in accordance with the
 procedures of this section and MPEP § 724.02 , the USPTO will, on its own
 initiative, waive the electronic filing requirement under 37 CFR 1.740(b) for
 the submission. Identification of the propriety or trade secret material should be made by
 page, line, and word, as necessary. The Office will not in the first instance undertake the
 task of determining the precise material in the application which is proprietary or trade
 secret information. Only the applicant is in a position to make this determination.
 See In re Schering-Plough Corp., 1 USPQ2d 1926, 1926 (Comm’r Pat.
 & Tm. 1986).
 

 The information will not be made public as part of the patent file before
 a certificate of patent extension is issued. Should the Office receive a Freedom of
 Information Act (FOIA) request for the material, the applicant will be provided notice and
 an opportunity to substantiate its claim that the material is proprietary before the Office
 determines whether disclosure of the material is required under the FOIA. If such
 information was material to a determination of eligibility or any other Office
 responsibility under 35
 U.S.C. 156 , it will be made public at the time the certificate of
 extension is issued. Otherwise, if a suitable petition to expunge is filed before the
 issuance of the certificate, the trade secret or confidential information will be expunged
 from the file and returned to the patent term extension applicant. If a petition to expunge
 is not filed prior to the issuance of the certificate, all of the information will be open
 to public inspection.
 

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 2701-Patent Term 

 2702-2709-[Reserved] 

 2710-Term Extensions or Adjustments for Delays Within the USPTO Under 35 U.S.C. 154 

 2711-2719-[Reserved] 

 2720-Applications Filed Between June 8, 1995, and May 28, 2000 

 2721-2729-[Reserved] 

 2730-Applications Filed on or After May 29, 2000; Grounds for Adjustment 

 2731-Period of Adjustment 

 2732-Reduction of Period of Adjustment of Patent Term 

 2733-Patent Term Adjustment Determination 

 2734-Application for Patent Term Adjustment; Due Care Showing 

 2735-[Reserved] 

 2736-Third-Party Papers 

 2737-2749-[Reserved] 

 2750-Patent Term Extension for Delays at other Agencies under 35 U.S.C. 156 

 2751-Eligibility Requirements 

 2752-Patent Term Extension Applicant 

 2753-Application Contents 

 2754-Filing Date 
 2754.01-Deadline for Filing an Application Under 35 U.S.C. 156(d)(1) 

 2754.02-Filing Window for an Application Under 35 U.S.C. 156(d)(5) 

 2754.03-[Removed and Reserved] 

 
 

 2755-Eligibility Determination 
 2755.01-Interim Extension of Patent Term During the Processing of the Application 

 2755.02-Interim Extension of Patent Term Before Product Approval 

 
 

 2756-Correspondence Between the USPTO and the Regulatory Agency 

 2757-Regulatory Agency Determination of the Length of the Regulatory Review Period 
 2757.01-Due Diligence Determination 

 
 

 2758-Notice of Final Determination - Calculation of Patent Term Extension 

 2759-Certificate of Extension of Patent Term 

 2760-Trade Secret, Confidential, and Protective Order Material 

 2761-Multiple Applications for Extension of Term of the Same Patent or of Different Patents for the Same Regulatory Review Period
 for a Product 

 2762-Duty of Disclosure in Patent Term Extension Proceedings 
 2762.01-Duty of Disclosure When a Terminal Disclaimer is Filed During Patent Term Extension Proceedings 

 
 

 2763-Limitation of Third-Party Participation 

 2764-Express Withdrawal of Application for Extension of Patent Term 

 2765-Petition for Stay in Processing of Patent Term Extension Application 

 2766-Processing of Patent Term Extension Applications When Reissue Has Been Filed 

 

 

 
 

 
 
 

 
 

 

 
 
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 Last Modified: 
 
 03/09/2026 20:50:50