June 10, 2013
As part of the Patent Office's commitment to provide further guidance subsequent to the Patent Notice entitled Practice Guidance following the Amazon FCA Decision (March 8, 2013), the Office hereby announces the release of practice guidance for patent examiners that will assist them with the examination of applications featuring medical use claims.
The practice guidance is outlined in the attached Exam Memo PN2013-04 Examination Practice Respecting Medical Uses and is in effect as of today's date.
NOTE: This patent notice is intended to provide guidance on current Patent Office practice and interpretation of relevant legislation and should not be quoted as, or considered to be, a legal authority. In the event of any inconsistency between this notice and the applicable legislation, the legislation must be followed. It is the responsibility of the applicant/right holder to decide how to proceed with respect to a particular application or other matter.