On September 16, 2012, final rules issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) (the rules) that implement provisions of the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act related to preissuance submissions by third parties become effective. The rules modify existing practice by allowing third parties to submit documents with a concise description of relevance of each document submitted with the same or greater time than previously allowed. The rules, once effective, apply to any application filed before, on, or after September 16, 2012.

A preissuance submission must be filed timely and contain a list identifying the items being submitted, a concise description of each item listed, a legible copy of each non-U.S. patent document listed, an English language translation of any non-English language item listed, a statement by the party making the submission that the submission complies with the statute and the rule, and the required fee.

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