There was a surge in filings of US patent applications before the main provisions of the America Invents Act ("AIA") came into force on 16th March, 2013.

 

There was a corresponding surge in PCT filings, claiming priority from the US applications. The 30/31 month deadlines for entering the national/regional filings for those PCT applications will be in September/October 2015.

 

As a consequence, Patent Offices and patent attorneys are likely to be much busier than usual in that period. It is recommended allowing additional time for translations to be prepared, where required. You may wish to ensure that your chosen attorneys have sufficient resources, including adequate finances to cover fees.

 

We assume that most Patent Offices will be prepared for the additional demand. The EPO, for example, has invested in improving electronic filing facilities over the years. Nearly all countries have provisions for extensions, so there is a fallback position if the filing facilities are overloaded, and similarly the demand can be spread over an additional few months if necessary (usually on payment of additional fees).

 

At Jenkins, we are ideally positioned to meet your PCT-foreign filing needs, especially at this high volume point corresponding to the AIA spike. With offices in four countries including China, and our extensive records departments, electronic filings and paperless office, we can save you time and money, while providing the usual high-quality Jenkins service. We can also arrange translations at competitive prices.

 

If you are interested in filing in any of EP, China, Germany or the UK, please email your instructions to a single contact point info@jenkins.eu . There are no added charges for inter-firm correspondence, for example, between the UK and China, because the filings are managed centrally. Our China office uses our UK systems, and we (and you) can correspond directly with the English-speaking Chinese partner in our Beijing office, Mr Handong Ran. This is also provides an additional layer of confidence and security at no extra cost.