MPEP § 1720 — MPEP § 1720
Current through: 2022-07-01

1720-Dissemination of Court and Patent Trial and Appeal Board Decisions 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 Skip over navigation 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 search for patents | search for trademarks 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Search 
 
 
 

 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 PATENTS 
 
 Patent Search 

 
 Patent Process 

 
 Patent Classification 

 
 Patent Forms 

 
 Statistics 

 
 Electronic Business Center 

 
 Patent Laws, Regulations, Policies & Procedures 

 
 Resources and Guidance 

 
 Office of Data Management 

 
 Announcements 

 
 Initiatives & Events 

 
 International Protection 

 
 Employee Locator 

 
 Contact Patents 

 

 

 
 TRADEMARKS 
 
 Trademark Search 

 
 Trademarks Process 

 
 News & Notices 

 
 Manuals, Guides, Official Gazette 

 
 Laws & Regulations 

 
 Online Filing 

 
 Contact Trademarks 

 

 

 
 IP LAW & POLICY 
 
 Rulemaking 

 
 IP Policy and Enforcement 

 
 Protecting IP Overseas 

 
 Training and Education 

 
 Training Programs & Conferences 

 
 Office of Governmental Affairs 

 
 Office of Chief Economist 

 
 Boards and Counsel 

 

 

 
 PRODUCTS & SERVICES 
 
 Electronic Data Products 

 
 XML Resources 

 
 XML Resources - Retrospective 

 
 USPTO Contact Center Order Form 

 
 Services 

 
 Locate Libraries 

 
 Training/Events 

 
 Online Services Hub 

 

 

 
 INVENTORS 
 
 Patents for Inventors 

 
 Trademarks for Inventors 

 
 Inventors Assistance 

 
 Education and Information 

 
 Scam Prevention 

 
 Pro Se and Pro Bono 

 
 Current Events 

 
 State Resources 

 
 InventorsEye Newsletter 

 

 

 
 NEWS & NOTICES 
 
 Subscription Center 

 
 Press Releases 

 
 Testimony and Speeches 

 
 Director's Forum 

 
 Systems Status 

 
 Emergency Notices 

 
 USPTO Videos 

 
 Official Gazette 

 
 Federal Register Notices 

 
 Event Calendar 

 

 

 
 FAQs 
 
 Patents FAQs 

 
 Trademarks FAQs 

 
 Assignments 

 
 Security 

 
 Musicians and Artists 

 
 Browser Plugins 

 
 Other Web Resources 

 

 

 
 ABOUT US 
 
 USPTO Leadership 

 
 USPTO Organization 

 
 USPTO Offices 

 
 Careers 

 
 Budget, Performance, and Planning 

 
 Statistics 

 
 Vendor Information 

 
 Public Advisory Committees 

 
 National Medal of Technology and Innovation 

 
 IP in Motion 

 
 Contact Us 

 

 

 
 
 

 

 
 

 
 
 
 
 Home Page 

 
 Patents 

 
 Patent Laws, Regulations, Policies & Procedures 

 
 Manual of Patent Examining Procedure 

 Chapter 1700 

 Section 1720 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 1720 Dissemination of Court and Patent Trial and Appeal Board
 Decisions [R-10.2019]
 
 I. COURT DECISIONS The Office of the Solicitor forwards to the Office of the Commissioner
 for Patents copies of all recent court decisions in patent cases where a precedential
 opinion is issued. The Office of the Commissioner for Patents will routinely forward
 these opinions to TC Directors, the Office of Patent Training, and the Director of the
 Office of Patent Quality Assurance.
 

 TC Directors, in turn, are to make copies available to supervisors and
 other individuals as the TC Director determines to be appropriate. TC Directors are
 encouraged to discuss the contents of the opinions in their staff meetings, particularly
 where such meetings are being held to reinforce examination quality.
 

 II. PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD DECISIONS A decision rendered by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (Board) is
 returned to the examiner. The examiner takes action consistent with the decision
 rendered by the Board unless rehearing of the Board decision is requested
 ( MPEP §
 1214.03 ). The TC Director may circulate and discuss the
 decision among some or all of the supervisors in the TC, and the supervisors, in turn,
 may circulate the decision among the examiners in their art units, depending on the
 subject matter or issues in the decisions.
 

 [top] 

 

 

 
 

 
 

 

 

 

 
 
 
 1701-Office Personnel Not To Express Opinion on Validity, Patentability, Expiration Date, or Enforceability of Patent 
 1701.01-Office Personnel Not To Testify 

 
 

 1702-Restrictions on Current and Former Office Employees Regarding Patent Matters 

 1703-The Official Gazette 

 1704-Application Records and Reports 

 1705-Examiner Docket, Time, and Activity Recordation 

 1706-1719-[Reserved] 

 1720-Dissemination of Court and Patent Trial and Appeal Board Decisions 

 1721-Treatment of Court and Patent Trial and Appeal Board Decisions Affecting Patent and Trademark Office Policy and Practice 

 1722-1729-[Reserved] 

 1730-Information Sources 

 

 

 
 

 
 
 

 
 

 

 
 
 Accessibility 

 Privacy Policy 

 Terms of Use 

 Security 

 Emergencies/Security Alerts 

 Information Quality Guidelines 

 
 

 
 
 Federal Activities Inventory Reform (FAIR) Act 

 Notification and Federal Employee Antidiscrimination and Retaliation (NoFEAR) Act 

 Budget & Performance 

 Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 

 
 

 
 
 Department of Commerce NoFEAR Act Report 

 Regulations.gov 

 STOP!Fakes.gov 

 Department of Commerce 

 USA.gov 

 
 

 
 
 Strategy Targeting Organized Piracy (STOP!) 

 Careers 

 Site Index 

 Contact Us 

 Submit Feedback 

 
 

 
 This page is owned by Patents.

 Last Modified: 
 
 03/09/2026 20:50:36