IP Report

Revised guidelines for patent examination – Revision to preferential examination system and information provision system

  • Writer: 특허법인아주
  • Date: 2022-01-18 11:32

(1) Preferential examination system

 

Article 4 of the Notice on application for preferential examination of patents and utility models stipulates that applicants may request a specialized institution announced by the Commissioner of the Korean Intellectual Property Office to conduct a prior art search and a preferential examination can be carried out.  Also, the Guidelines for Patent Examination stipulate that an Examiner shall start the examination within 4 months from the date of mailing the decision of preferential examination.

 

Recently, in response to the rapid increase in preferential examinations, in order to reduce the examiners’ burden of schedule for preferential examination and to stabilize the preferential examination system by adjusting the system of “preferential examination of a prior art search requested to specialized institutions,” which is the main factor of the rapid increase, with respect to the request for preferential examination according to Article 4 of the Notice, the due date on which the examiner shall start the examination is extended to 8 months from the date of mailing the decision of preferential examination.

 

As the date on which the examination of “the preferential examination of a prior art search requested to specialized institutions” shall be begun is extended, the actual benefit is expected to be lower than that of the general examination in light of the period of time taken for examination, and accordingly, the delay in general examinations of the patent application is expected to be minimized.

The revised guidelines for examination shall begin on June 23, 2021.

 

(2) Information provision system

 

The Guidelines for Patent Examination stipulate that when a patent application is rejected because of information provided in accordance with the information provision system (Article 63bis of the Patent Law), the informant shall be notified of the examination results.

 

Recently, the KIPO revised the examination guidelines such that an applicant is notified of the fact of information provision to provide the applicant an opportunity to actively defend against it.  According to the revision, the applicant can be notified of the fact of information provision and document numbers of evidence one month after the date on which the information is provided.

 

In addition, in order to enhance the protection of applicants’ interests, when an applicant wants the examiner to further review the information provided under the information provision system, the KIPO will designate the case as grounds for deferring examination such that the examiner can further review the case.

 

The revised guidelines for examination shall begin on June 23, 2021.

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