Patent and PTAB Pro Bono Programs

The Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (AIA), Public Law 112–29 § 32 (2011) directs the USPTO to work with and support intellectual property law associations across the country in the establishment of pro bono programs designed to assist financially under-resourced independent inventors and small businesses (also referred to as “regional hubs”). To support this, the USPTO works with and supports various non-profit organizations to operate a series of autonomous regional hubs that endeavor to match low-income inventors with volunteer patent practitioners across the United States. The regional hubs comprise law schools, bar associations, innovation/entrepreneurial organizations, and arts-focused lawyer referral services that are strategically located to provide access to patent pro bono services across all fifty states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. To support the purposes described above, the Patent Pro Bono Survey collects information regarding the activity of the regional hubs. The USPTO works with the Pro Bono Advisory Council (PBAC) to determine what information is necessary to evaluate the effectiveness of each regional hub’s operations. The PBAC is a well-established group of patent practitioners and thought leaders in intellectual property who provide support and guidance to the regional hubs across the country. The data collected provides the USPTO with valuable information, including the number of inventor inquiries, referral sources, number of pro bono applicants successfully matched with patent practitioners, and types of patent filings. The USPTO, PBAC, and the regional hubs, are responsible for the quarterly collection of this data. The USPTO’s Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB), collaborates with the PTAB Bar Association (PTAB Bar Assoc.), a non-profit organization focused on helping secure the just, speedy, and inexpensive resolution of every PTAB proceeding and serves the public by coordinating pro bono opportunities. The PTAB and the PTAB Bar Assoc. established a national clearinghouse that acts as a matchmaker to connect under-resourced inventors with volunteer patent practitioners across the United States for assistance in preparing and arguing ex parte appeals before the PTAB. The PTAB Bar Assoc.’s national clearinghouse provides nationwide access to legal representation for pro bono ex parte appeal services. The PTAB Pro Bono Program supports the purposes described above by facilitating the availability of pro bono services for proceedings before the PTAB, which the USPTO believes can help reduce the financial burden on under-resourced inventors seeking ex parte appeal assistance, especially those impacted by the pandemic.

The latest form for Patent and PTAB Pro Bono Programs expires 2029-04-30 and can be found here.

Patent Pro Bono Survey

Federal Enterprise Architecture: Economic Development - Intellectual Property Protection

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