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ARTICLE · 23 JULY 2021

USPTO Updates Its Guidance On Interim Director Review Process

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On July 20, 2021, and in response to the Office's request for feedback on the interim Director review process, the USPTO has updated and revised its Arthrex Q&As to clarify certain aspects of the interim procedure.

United StatesIntellectual Property
Oblon, McClelland, Maier & Neustadt, L.L.P
Oblon, McClelland, Maier & Neustadt, L.L.P
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On July 20, 2021, and in response to the Office's request for feedback on the interim Director review process, the USPTO has updated and revised its Arthrex  Q&As to clarify certain aspects of the interim procedure.

For example, and as discussed in my June 29, 2021 post, the Office's original guidance was unclear as to whether serial panel rehearing and then Director review petitions would be allowed. The Q&A now makes clear that a party cannot request both Director review and panel rehearing after issuance of a final written decision:

[A]fter a panel issues a final written decision in an inter partes review or a post-grant review, a party may request either Director review or rehearing by the original PTAB panel, but may not request both. If a party requests Director review, and that review is not granted, the party may not then request PTAB panel rehearing. If a party requests rehearing by the original PTAB panel and the panel denies rehearing, the party may

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