WHIPgroup Uses PPH Program to Obtain Faster Allowances

January, 12th, 2016

Categories: Blog, News Tags: patent, USPTO, whipgroup

WHIPgroup attorneys file a large number of patent prosecution highway (PPH) petitions. The PPH is a set of initiatives designed to accelerate patent prosecution by allowing participating patent offices to benefit from one another’s opinions (e.g., includes Written Opinion of International Search Authority). A patent application may be granted PPH status (fast-track examination procedures) in the U.S. if a foreign patent office has found patentable at least one corresponding claim in a related application. Analysis of data indicates that over a third of PPH-eligible patent applications filed by WHIPgroup attorneys have been allowed without any office actions. Another third of these applications were found to have allowable subject matter in the first office action. Final disposition of PPH cases, from filing of the request to obtaining a granted patent, is typically less than a year. Accordingly, clients are benefiting from accelerated prosecution leading to faster allowances, as well as less rejections resulting in lowered costs. WHIPgroup will continue to leverage programs like the PPH in order to provide value to our clients.