IP5 And Global PPH Pilot Programs Implemented On January 6, 2014

Important changes to Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) practice at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and other intellectual property offices around the world took effect on January 6, 2014. The world's five largest IP offices – the USPTO, the European Patent Office (EPO), the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the Japan Patent Office, and the State Intellectual Property Office of the People's Republic of China (collectively, the "IP5") – launched a new PPH pilot program (referred to as the "IP5 PPH"). Simultaneously, and with the inclusion of three IP5 members, thirteen intellectual property offices launched a similar pilot program titled the "Global PPH" pilot program. The Global PPH pilot program includes the national offices of the United States, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Portugal, Russia, Spain, United Kingdom, and the Nordic Patent Institute.