Good News to Provisional Application: (米国仮出願に朗報）
米国特許出願において期限(応答期限或は支払い期限）を考える場合に、その期限日が土日或はワシントンDCの休日と一致する場合には、米国特許庁の次の業務日まで延期可能であります。 例えば、特許局通知に対する応答期限日が2月5日(土曜日）である場合には2月7日(月曜日）まで延期可能であります。 これを仮に期限の「休日ルール」と称するならば、米国特許出願において仮出願(provisional application)より優先権を主張する1年の期限のみが唯一、この「休日ルール」の適用ができませんでした。
しかし、今回の米国特許法改正によって、この例外的な仮出願からの優先権主張期限にも「休日ルール」の適用が可能となりました。
施行日：1995年6月8日以降出願の全ての仮出願に適用可能
以下改正法案の原文
SEC. 4801. PROVISIONAL APPLICATIONS.
(a) ABANDONMENT- Section 111(b)(5) of title 35, United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
`(5) ABANDONMENT- Notwithstanding the absence of a claim, upon timely request and as prescribed by the Director, a provisional application may be treated as an application filed under subsection (a). Subject to section 119(e)(3) of this title, if no such request is made, the provisional application shall be regarded as abandoned 12 months after the filing date of such application and shall not be subject to revival after such 12-month period.'.
(b) TECHNICAL AMENDMENT RELATING TO WEEKENDS AND HOLIDAYS- Section 119(e) of title 35, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
`(3)
If the day that is 12 months after the filing date of a provisional application falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or Federal holiday within the District of Columbia, the period of pendency of the provisional application shall be extended to the next succeeding secular or business day.'.(c) ELIMINATION OF COPENDENCY REQUIREMENT- Section 119(e)(2) of title 35, United States Code, is amended by striking `and the provisional application was pending on the filing date of the application for patent under section 111(a) or section 363 of this title'.
(d) EFFECTIVE DATE- The amendments made by this section shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act and shall apply to any provisional application filed on or after June 8, 1995, except that the amendments made by subsections (b) and (c) shall have no effect with respect to any patent which is the subject of litigation in an action commenced before such date of enactment.
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