USPTO Allows Parties To Request De-designation Of Precedential Or Informative Decisions And Updates PTAB Web Resources To Provide Better User Experience

By Godson Umejiego, Bureau Chief, The Americas

To provide practitioners and other stakeholders with the ability to provide additional feedback to inform the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB)’s precedential and informative decision designation process, USPTO has updated its PTAB Decision Nomination Webpage to provide the option to request the “de-designation” of a PTAB decision that is currently identified as “precedential” or “informative” and that serves as a guiding force for the Board.

To provide a better user experience, USPTO has also updated its Status of Director Review requests webpage, which includes the cases in which Director Review has been granted. The page now organizes Director Review decisions by subject matter and provides more convenient access to all recent actions and cases.

“These two changes are in direct response to stakeholder feedback we’ve received,” said USPTO Director Kathi Vidal. “They are clear examples of how important stakeholder feedback is to us, and how it can be used to improve our services as we work to deliver robust and reliable IP rights and enhance customer experience.”