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In order to be registered as a patent agent or
patent attorney A patent attorney is an attorney who has the specialized qualifications necessary for representing clients in obtaining patents and acting in all matters and procedures relating to patent law and practice, such as filing patent applications and op ...
in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...
, one must pass the
United States Patent and Trademark Office The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is an agency in the U.S. Department of Commerce that serves as the national patent office and trademark registration authority for the United States. The USPTO's headquarters are in Al ...
(USPTO) registration examination, officially called the Examination for Registration to Practice in Patent Cases Before the United States Patent and Trademark Office and known informally as the patent bar.


Background

Persons who pass the registration exam and become admitted as patent agents before admission to a state bar are allowed to change registration to patent attorney upon supplying the USPTO with proof of good standing in a state or territorial bar.


Tested subject matter

The examination is intended to measure the applicant's familiarity with USPTO procedures,
ethics Ethics or moral philosophy is a branch of philosophy that "involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior".''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' The field of ethics, along with aesthetics, concerns m ...
rules, federal statutes, and regulations. The applicant is allowed to use an electronic copy of the
Manual of Patent Examining Procedure The ''Manual of Patent Examining Procedure'' (MPEP) is published by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for use by patent attorneys and agents and patent examiners. It describes all of the laws and regulations that must be foll ...
(MPEP) in the computer-based examination (and historically had access to a paper copy of the MPEP for the pencil-and-paper test), but is strictly prohibited from consulting any other written materials. A large number of questions typically deal with the proper drafting and handling of a
U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...
patent application or
international application The Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) is an international patent law treaty, concluded in 1970. It provides a unified procedure for filing patent applications to protect inventions in each of its contracting states. A patent application filed und ...
. The examination is a partial open book exam in the sense that applicants have access to the MPEP and all exam answers can be found in or readily derived from the MPEP. However, the questions are difficult enough to ensure that an applicant not already thoroughly familiar with the general concepts of U.S. patent law and the structure of the MPEP will not be able to complete all questions within the allotted time.


Structure

The exam is a 100-question, six-hour,
multiple-choice Multiple choice (MC), objective response or MCQ (for multiple choice question) is a form of an objective assessment in which respondents are asked to select only correct answers from the choices offered as a list. The multiple choice format is m ...
test. The test is divided into morning and afternoon sections, each comprising fifty questions completed within a three-hour time limit. The exam contains 10 beta questions which do not count towards the exam taker's final score, but they are not identified among the hundred. The required score to pass is 70%, or 63 correct out of the 90 graded questions. Over the past decade and a half, pass rates for the examination have ranged from 42.8% (2014) to 59.6% (2009). Before June 2004, the USPTO registration exam was a pencil-and-paper test given at approximately 15 locations around the country. The USPTO has moved to a computer-based examination which can be taken on any business day at any of several hundred
Prometric Prometric, also known as Prometric Testing, is a U.S.-based company in the test administration industry. Its corporate headquarters is located in Canton (Baltimore, Maryland) in the United States. Prometric operates a test center network composed ...
locations around the country. A sample computerized exam is available to provide a feel for how the exam is administered, but this "practice exam" contains no sample questions. Once an applicant has been approved to sit for the exam, he or she has 90 days in which to schedule an examination date with Prometric. Past exams from 2002 and 2003 are available from the USPTO online without cost.


Prerequisites


General

The USPTO requires that all those applying for registration (agents or attorneys) meet three requirements: (1) good moral character, (2) legal, scientific and technical qualifications necessary to render valuable service, and (3) competence to advise and assist patent applicants in the presentation and prosecution of patent applications. The registration exam primarily addresses the third requirement. The second requirement is typically met with a
bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six y ...
in a recognized technical subject; the USPTO calls this "Category A" eligibility. These fields include
biology Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary ...
, chemistry, computer science, most
engineering Engineering is the use of scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad range of more speciali ...
disciplines, and
physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which relat ...
. Two other options are available to satisfy the second requirement: having enough semester hours of specific science courses ("Category B") or passing the
Fundamentals of Engineering exam The Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam, also referred to as the Engineer in Training (EIT) exam, and formerly in some states as the Engineering Intern (EI) exam, is the first of two examinations that engineers must pass in order to be licensed ...
("Category C"). Note that the requirements for Category B eligibility are considerably more onerous than for Category A—not only must the candidate provide official college transcripts, he or she must supply a copy of the official course description, concurrent with the year that the course was taken, for each course used to establish eligibility for the exam. Degrees in the philosophical arts (such as
pure mathematics Pure mathematics is the study of mathematical concepts independently of any application outside mathematics. These concepts may originate in real-world concerns, and the results obtained may later turn out to be useful for practical applications ...
) or the
social sciences Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of socie ...
(such as
sociology Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of empirical investigation and ...
) are not sufficient by themselves to meet the technical training requirement. However, the scientific and technical training requirement can be fulfilled by submitting proof of 40 semester hours of undergraduate courses in the above fields, 8 of which must consist of either two consecutive semesters of physics for scientists and engineers with laboratory or two consecutive semesters of general chemistry with laboratory. Consecutive means that the two courses cover one curriculum, such as physics 101 and 102. All 40 semester hours can be completed at community colleges and do not have to result in any bachelor of science degree. All of the courses must be applicable towards a degree in the subject. For example, physics with calculus would count, while physics without calculus, usually taken by other majors, would not. Other Category B qualifications allow for one without a bachelor's degree in a listed field to also demonstrate he or she has had 24 semester hours in physics for physics majors (called Option 1), 32 semester hours in chemistry, physics and biology (called Option 2) or 30 semester hours in chemistry for chemistry majors.


Foreigners

Non-U.S. citizens wishing to practice before the USPTO in their own country may also register by meeting the same requirements if the individual is registered to practice before the patent office in their country of residence AND if their country has a reciprocity agreement with the U.S. Currently, only one country, Canada, has such an agreement; while the
Canadian Intellectual Property Office The Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO; French: ''Office de la propriété intellectuelle du Canada, OPIC'') is responsible for the administration and processing of the greater part of intellectual property (IP) in Canada. CIPO's areas ...
does not recognize this reciprocity. Moreover, the USPTO makes no effort to verify; the requirement exists merely on paper and has no force. Such registration is granted for the limited purpose of representing patent applicants from the individual's country of residence before the USPTO. Non-U.S. citizens legally residing in the United States, having a valid nonimmigrant work visa, and already employed by a patent firm in a patent prosecution role (often referred to as a "technical specialist") may take the exam in order to gain ''limited recognition'' to act as a patent agent for applications being handled through their employer. This law on Aliens, 37 C.F.R. 11.6(c), is not enforced by the USPTO Office of Enrollment and Discipline (OED). However, employees of the USPTO must be U.S. citizens and this is verified in a background check; patent agents who want to work for the USPTO must first become U.S. citizens.


See also

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Admission to the bar in the United States Admission to the bar in the United States is the granting of permission by a particular court system to a lawyer to practice law in the jurisdiction and before those courts. Each U.S. state and similar jurisdiction (e.g. territories under fe ...
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Representation before the European Patent Office The European Patent Convention (EPC), the multilateral treaty providing the legal system according to which European patents are granted, contains provisions regarding whether a natural or juristic person (i.e., a party to the proceedings) needs to ...


References

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External links


Office of Enrollment and Discipline
at the USPTO (including "Exam Resources") Legal profession exams Standardized tests in the United States United States patent law