Office Action Monitoring

Using the Monitor module, NLPatent users are now able to receive alerts for relevant patent prosecution events. Users can set up Office Action (OA) monitors, to be notified when specific US office actions are created for any published US patent application.

There are two methods of creating an OA monitor, both which are shown in this tutorial.

Creating an Standalone OA Monitor

If you're already aware of some patents you would like the monitor the office actions for, you can create a monitor using the new "Office Action" Monitor type. Like a Patent List Monitor, an Office Action monitor allows you to specify a list of patents/applications you are interested in by providing the publications for

Step by Step Guide

Step 1: Create a Monitor by navigating to the Create Monitor button

• Name your monitor appropriately, and then select Office Action Monitor
• Click Save and Continue to go to the next step

Step 2: Add Patents

Step 3: Select Monitoring Codes:

• By Default we have these 27 codes selected:

CTNF, A..., N/=., WPIR, CTFR, A.NE, RCEX, CTRS, ABN2, ELC., CTAV, N/AP, CTEQ, ABN6, AP.B, ABNX, EABN, ABN3, ABN7, ABNF, APDA, ABN10, APDR,APDP, EXABN, ABN11, ABN4

• However, there are other codes which are available that users can select based on their interests.
• Once the appropriate codes are selected, click Next Step

Step 4: Set Alert Frequency + Finalize Set Up

• Choose the alert frequency: weekly, fortnightly, or monthly.
• Specify any other recipients for the alerts.
• Set an effective from date for the monitoring.
• Once everything is good, click save and continue

Step 5: Preview Page

There is a final preview page showing the alerts that would have been generated in the last 3 months based on the patents that you have chosen for your monitor. If all looks good, hit Enable Monitor

• Now, in the future if there are any monitored office actions, they will be emailed to you at the set frequency.

Using the Watchlist for Monitor

If users are agnostic about where a patent monitor is stored, they may use the Watchlist instead. A video, along with written instructions is below.

1) Accessing the Watchlist

The base watchlist can be found in the the Monitor tab of NLPatent. By default the Watchlist will send updates on a weekly basis, and will monitor the default 27 office actions.

2) Adding Patents to the Watchlist

Patents can be added to the Watchlist by clicking on the binocular icon on any appropriate page. When a patent is added, it will automatically start monitoring for the appropriate OAs.

3) Managing your Watchlist

Patents added to the Watchlist can be found by clicking on the Watchlist Monitor in the Monitor Interface. Click Patents to Monitor to get the full list.

Furthermore, one can also configure which Office Actions are monitored by going to Office Action settings.