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ARTICLE · 30 DECEMBER 2014

How Long Does Patent And Trademark Prosecution Take? (2014 Edition)

Fox Rothschild LLP
Fox Rothschild LLP
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At the end of each fiscal year, the USPTO releases a Performance and Accountability Report, which is loaded with data about patent and trademark allowance rates, average pendency, and other details.

United StatesIntellectual Property

At the end of each fiscal year, the USPTO releases a Performance and Accountability Report,  which is loaded with data about patent and trademark allowance rates, average pendency, and other details. The USPTO recently released its Performance and Accountability Report for Fiscal Year  2014. This means that it's time for IP Spotlight's annual review of the question:  "how long does it take to receive a patent or trademark registration?"

To answer that question, here are a few highlights from the USPTO's 2014 report:

Patents:  After several years of steep reductions in patent application pendency, the USPTO's efforts appeared to plateau in fiscal year (FY) 2014. The average time between filing and first office action was 18.4 months, which was slightly above FY 2013's average of 18.2 months. The USPTO fared better in reducing average total pendency from 29.1 months in FY 2013 to 27.4 months in FY 2014, but this was still short of the USPTO's goal of 26.7 months.

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