Four Reasons To File An RCE With A Request To Suspend Processing

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) allows a Request for Continued Examination (RCE) to be filed with a request to suspend processing of the RCE for up to 3 months, in accordance with 37 CFR 1.103(c).  The suspension request is submitted merely by checking a box on the USPTO's standard RCE form, indicating a desired delay of 1, 2, or 3 months, and paying the required processing fee.  Prolonging prosecution is ordinarily undesirable, so why would an applicant want to purposely delay examination after the filing of an RCE?  This article explores four possible reasons.

1. Waiting for data: Clinical or other testing data may not be available when an RCE is due for filing but may be expected to become available within 3 months of the due date.  Suspending RCE processing can buy time for the data to be gathered and submitted to the USPTO in a supplemental response or Rule 132 Declaration to traverse a claim rejection or objection.  Without a request to