General Revision and Amendment of the Patent Law

authority shall be proved by certificate of a diplomatic or consular officer of the United States."

SEC. 3. That section 4896 of the Revised Statutes (U. S. C., title 35, sec. 46) be, and the same is hereby, amended to read as follows:

"When any person having made any new invention or discovery for which a patent might have been granted, dies before a patent is granted, the right of applying for and obtaining the patent shall devolve on his executor or administrator, in trust for the heirs at law of the deceased in case he shall have died intestate; or if he shall have left a will disposing of the same, then in trust for his devisees, in as full manner and on the same terms and conditions as the same might have been claimed or enjoyed by him in his lifetime; and when any person having made any new invention or discovery for which a patent might have been granted becomes insane before a patent is granted the right of applying for and obtaining the patent shall devolve on his legally appointed guardian, conservator, or representative in trust for his estate in as full manner and on the same terms and conditions as the same might have been claimed or enjoyed by him while sane; and when the application is made by such legal representatives the statements required to be made in the application shall be so varied in form that it can be made by them. The executor or administrator duly authorized under the law of any foreign country to administer upon the estate of the deceased inventor shall, in case the said inventor was not domiciled in the United States at the time of his death, have the right to apply for and obtain the patent. The authority of such foreign executor or administrator shall be proved by certificate of a diplomatic or consular officer of the United States."

[H. R. 11017, Seventy-second Congress, first session. Amending H. R. 10154]

A BILL Permitting single signature in patent applications and validating joint patent for sole invention

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That section 4888 of the Revised Statutes (U. S. C., title 35, sec. 33) be, and the same is hereby, amended to read as follows:

"Before any inventor or discoverer shall receive a patent for his invention or discovery he shall file application therefor in the Patent Office, which application shall give the name of the inventor and shall include a written description of the invention or discovery, and of the manner and process of making, constructing, compounding, and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art or science to which it appertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make, construct, compound, and use the same; and in case of a machine he shall explain the principle thereof, and the best mode in which he has contemplated applying that principle, so as to distinguish it from other inventions; and he shall particularly point out and distinctly claim the part, improvement, or combination which he claims as his invention or discovery; and said application shall conclude with a statement that the applicant does verily believe himself to be the original and first inventor or discoverer of the invention for which he solicits a patent; that he does not know and does not believe that the same was ever known or used before his invention or discovery thereof, and that to the best of his knowledge and belief the invention has not been in public use or on sale in the United States for more than two years prior to his application, or patented or described in any printed publication in any country before his invention or more than two years prior to his application, or patented in any foreign country on an application filed by him or his legal representatives or assigns more than twelve months prior to his application in the United States. The application shall be signed at the end thereof by the inventor and sworn to by him. No plant patent shall be declared invalid on the ground of insufficient description if the description is made as complete as is reasonably possible. If the application includes an oath and specification separately signed it shall be a compliance with this statute.

"Whenever without any fraudulent or deceptive intention two or more persons have heretofore made or hereafter make application for letters patent as joint inventors, when the subject matter defined by the claims of the patent in whole or in part is the invention of a lesser number of said parties applicant, any patent heretofore or hereafter granted on such an application shall not be invalid because of such misjoinder of parties applicant and shall have the same

GENERAL REVISION AND AMENDMENT OF PATENT LAW

force and effect as if the patent had been granted to the grantee or grantees on an application or applications executed by the true inventor or inventors of the subject matter defined by the claims thereof."

SEC. 2. That section 4892 of the Revised Statutes (U. S. C., title 35, sec. 35) be, and the same is hereby, amended to read as follows:

"The application may be sworn to before any person within the United States authorized by law to administer oaths, or, when the applicant resides in a foreign country, before any minister, chargé d'affaires, consul, or commercial agent holding commission under the Government of the United States, or before any notary public, judge, or magistrate having an official seal and authorized to administer oaths in the foreign country in which the applicant may be, whose authority shall be proved by certificate of a diplomatic or consular officer of the United States."

SEC. 3. That section 4896 of the Revised Statutes (U. S. C., title 35, sec. 46) be, and the same is hereby, amended to read as follows:

"When any person, having made any new invention or discovery for which a patent might have been granted, dies before a patent is granted, the right of applying for and obtaining the patent shall devolve on his executor or administrator, in trust for the heirs at law of the deceased in case he shall have died intestate; or if he shall have left a will disposing of the same, then in trust for his devisees, in as full manner and on the same terms and conditions as the same might have been claimed or enjoyed by him in his lifetime; and when any person having made any new invention or discovery for which a patent might have been granted becomes insane before a patent is granted, the right of applying for and obtaining the patent shall devolve on his legally appointed guardian, conservator, or representative in trust for his estate in as full manner and on the same terms and conditions as the same might have been claimed or enjoyed by him while sane; and when the application is made by such legal representatives the statements required to be made in the application shall be so varied in form that it can be made by them. The executor or administrator duly authorized under the law of any foreign country to administer upon the estate of the deceased inventor shall, in case the said inventor was not domiciled in the United States at the time of his death, have the right to apply for and obtain the patent. The authority of such foreign executor or administrator shall be proved by certificate of a diplomatic or consular officer of the United States."

SEC. 4. Nothing in this act shall validate any patent held invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction prior to the passage of this act.

[H. R. 10155, Seventy-second Congress, first session.

as H. R. 11087]

Reintroduced after being amended

A BILL To abolish the statute permitting renewal of patent applications Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That section 4885 of the Revised Statutes (U. S. C., title 35, sec. 38) be amended by adding the following: Provided, That during the said period of six months from the notice of allowance other claims may be presented by applicant upon the payment of a fee of $25 for the first claim and $5 for each additional claim, and the claims shall be given immediate consideration and action by the examiner as provided by section 4903 of the Revised Statutes, but no claim so presented shall be included in the patent granted on such application unless such claim shall have been duly allowed by the examiner before two months after payment of the final fee, and no examination or reexamination may be had after two months after payment of the final fee."

SEC. 2. That section 4897 of the Revised Statutes (U. S. C., title 35, sec. 38) be, and the same is hereby, repealed: Provided, That this shall not prohibit the renewal of patent applications allowed prior to the passage of this act.

[H. R. 11087, Seventy-second Congress, first session. Amending H. R. 10155]

"but the fee may be accepted within twelve months from the notice of allowance and the patent issued upon the filing of a petition, accompanied by a fee of $10, showing to the satisfaction of the Commissioner of Patents that such delay beyond the said six-months period was unavoidable: Provided, That during the said period of six months from the notice of allowance other claims may be presented by applicant upon the payment of a fee of $25 for the first claim and $5 for each additional claim, and the claims shall be given immediate consideration and action by the examiner as provided by section 4903 of the Revised Statutes, but no claim so presented shall be included in the patent granted on such application unless such claim shall have been duly allowed by the examiner before two months after payment of the final fee, and noexamination or reexamination may be had after two months after payment of the final fee."

[H. R. 10156, Seventy-second Congress, first session.

as H. R. 11019]

Reintroduced after being amended

A BILL To limit inventors to priority of two years before filing applications for patent

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That section 4886 of the Revised Statutes (U. S. C., title 35, sec. 31) be, and the same is hereby, amended to read as follows:

"Any person who has invented or discovered any new and useful art, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvements thereof, or who has invented or discovered and asexually reproduced any distinct and new variety of plant, other than a tuber-propagated plant, not known or used by others in this country before his invention or discovery thereof, and not patented or described in any printed publication in this or any foreign country before his invention or discovery thereof or more than two years prior to his application, and not in public use or on sale in this country for more than two years prior to his application, unless the same is proved to have been abandoned, may, upon payment of the fees required by law and other due proceeding had, obtain a patent therefor.

"If in any proceeding involving an application for patent, or in any suit in law or in equity involving an application for patent or a right arising out of the grant of a patent thereon, there shall be submitted satisfactory proof of invention or discovery of the subject matter patented or sought to be patented by such applicant or patentee at a date more than two years before the filing of the earliest application for patent upon which such applicant or patentee may rely for constructive reduction to practice of the invention, such proof shall be held to establish invention or discovery no more than two years prior to the filing of such earliest application: Provided, however, That there shall be excepted from the operation of the foregoing provisions all patents heretofore granted, all applications heretofore filed, all applications filed after the passage of this act wherein the applicant is entitled to rely for constructive reduction to practice upon an application heretofore filed, as well as patents granted on any such applications.'

[H. R. 11019, Seventy-second Congress, first session. Amending H. R. 10156]

A BILL To limit inventors to priority of two years before filing applications for patent

discovery thereof, and not patented or described in any printed publication in this or any foreign country before his invention or discovery thereof or more than two years prior to his application, and not in public use or on sale in this country for more than two years prior to his application, unless the same is proved to have been abandoned, may, upon payment of the fees required by law and other due proceeding had, obtain a patent therefor.

"If in any proceeding involving an application for patent, or in any suit in law or in equity involving an application for patent or a right arising out of the grant of a patent thereon, there shall be submitted satisfactory proof of invention or discovery by such applicant or patentee of the subject matter patented or sought to be patented at a date more than two years before the filing of the earliest application for patent upon which such applicant or patentee may rely for constructive reduction to practice of the invention, such proof shall be held to establish invention or discovery no more than two years prior to the filing of such earliest application: Provided, however, That there shall be excepted from the operation of the foregoing provisions all patents heretofore granted, all applications heretofore filed, all applications filed after the passage of this act wherein the applicant is entitled to rely for constructive reduction to practice upon an application heretofore filed, as well as patents granted on any such applications."

[H. R. 10157, Seventy-second Congress, first session]

A BILL To expedite prosecution of patent applications pending more than three years

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That section 4894 of the Revised Statutes (U. S. C., title 35, sec. 37) be, and the same is hereby, amended to read as follows:

"All applications for patents shall be completed and prepared for examination within six months after the filing of the application and in default thereof, or upon failure of the applicant to prosecute the same within six months after any action therein, or upon failure of the applicant to place his application in condition for issuance of patent thereon, or for appeal, within a time limit set by the commissioner in accordance with section 4903 of the Revised Statutes of the United States, as amended, of which action notice shall have been given to applicant, they shall be regarded as abandoned by the parties thereto, unless it be shown to the satisfaction of the Commissioner of Patents that such delay was unavoidable: Provided, however, That no application shall be regarded as abandoned which has become the property of the Government of the United States and with respect to which the head of any department of the Government shall have certified to the Commissioner of Patents, within a period of three years, that the invention disclosed therein is important to the armament or defense of the United States: Provided further, That within ninety days, and not less than thirty days, before the expiration of any such three-year period the Commissioner of Patents shall, in writing, notify the head of the department interested in any pending application for patent, of the approaching expiration of the three-year period within which any application for patent shall have been pending."

SEC. 2. That section 4903 of the Revised Statutes (U. S. C., title 35, sec. 51) be, and the same is hereby, amended to read as follows:

"Whenever, on examination, any claim for a patent is rejected, the commissioner shall notify the applicant thereof, giving him briefly the reasons for such rejection, together with such information and references as may be useful in judging of the propriety of renewing his application or of altering his specification; and if, after receiving such notice, the applicant persists in his claim for a patent, with or without altering his specifications, the commissioner shall order a reexamination of the case: Provided, however, That whenever any application for patent has been pending three years, or claims an invention disclosed in an application by the same inventor which has been on file in the Patent Office three years or more, the commissioner may order that such application be placed in condition for allowance or appeal within any time fixed in the commissioner's order, not less than thirty days. And it shall be the duty of the commissioner, unless good cause to the contrary shall appear, after the expiration of said period to take final action on said application."

GENERAL REVISION AND AMENDMENT OF PATENT LAW

[H. R. 9448, Seventy-second Congress, First Session, being reintroduced after being amended as H. R. 10741]

A BILL To provide a permanent force to classify patents, and so forth, in the Patent Office

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That section 2 of the act of June 10, 1898 (30 Stat. L. 440), be, and the same is hereby, amended to read as follows: "SEC. 2. That for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this Act, the Commissioner of Patents is hereby authorized and directed to maintain a classification division in the Patent Office, and, in addition to the examiner of classification and the two assistant chiefs now provided for by law, the commissioner is authorized to appoint in the manner now provided by law 35 additional examiners in professional grades 2 to 4, inclusive, whose time shall be devoted exclusively to the classification of patents, including questions of division, and such additional clerks to those now employed as he may deem necessary to maintain the efficiency of said division: Provided, however, That the annual expense of this additional force shall not exceed the sum of $125,000."

[H. R. 10741, Seventy-second Congress, first session. Amending H. R. 9448]

A BILL To provide a permanent force to classify patents, and so forth, in the Patent Office

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That section 2 of the act of June 10, 1898 (30 Stat. L. 440), be, and the same is hereby, amended to read as follows: "SEC. 2. That for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this act the Commissioner of Patents is hereby authorized and directed to maintain a classification division in the Patent Office, and, in addition to the examiner of classification and the two assistant chiefs now provided for by law, the Commissioner of Patents is authorized and directed to maintain in said classification division not less than thirty-five examiners whose time shall be devoted exclusively to the classification of patents, including questions of division; and that for the purpose of maintaining the minimum number of examiners specified in this section in the classification division, without reducing the number of examiners engaged in the examination of patent applications, the Commissioner of Patents is authorized to appoint, in the manner now provided by law, thirty-five additional examiners in professional grades 2 to 4, inclusive, and such additional clerks to those now employed as he may deem necessary to maintain the efficiency of said classification division: Provided, however, That the annual expense of this additional force shall not exceed the sum of $125,000."

[H. R. 6677, Seventy-second Congress, first session.

as H. R. 11054]

Reintroduced after being amended

A BILL To prevent fraud, deception, or improper practice in connection with business before the United States Patent Office, and for other purposes

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That it shall be unlawful for any person to practice, describe himself, or hold himself out, or permit himself to be described or held out, as a patent agent or patent attorney, unless he is duly recognized to practice before the United States Patent Office in accordance with the provisions of section 487 of the Revised Statutes (U. S. C., title 35, ch. 1, sec. 11). It shall further be unlawful for any person who is not so recognized, or, who, having been so recognized, has been subsequently disbarred, to in any manner convey the impression that he either alone or together with any other person or persons, has, owns, conducts, or maintains an office of any kind for preparing or prosecuting applications for patents, or for compensation to act or practice as a patent agent, patent attorney, or counselor with respect to matters relating to patents before the United States Patent Office: Provided, That nothing in this act shall prevent any attorney who is legally admitted to practice law in any State or Territory of the United States, unless he has been disbarred from practice before the Patent Office, from

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