GovWire

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The purpose of this manual is to provide detailed, up-to-date guidelines as to the practice and procedures to be followed in the various aspects of the formalities examination of patent applications in accordance with the Patents Act 1977 and the Patents Rules 2007.

The guidelines are intended primarily for staff in the Patents Formalities Groups for use as desk instructions in carrying out their daily duties. Case advice should be sought from the Head of Administration when situations which are not addressed in the manual come to light.

In addition to dealing with normal patent applications filed under s.14 and s.15(9) of the Patent Act 1977 the manual also deals with the practice and procedures to be followed in processing national phase patent applications filed under s.89.

Statements made in the Manual are not in themselves an authority for any action by the IPO and should not be used as a set of legal requirements. The Patents Act 1977 and the Patents Rules 2007 are the ultimate authority on practice.

The manual will be updated when necessary to reflect changes in legislation or practice. If you notice any errors please email the manual editor: Head of Formalities Training and Technical Processing.