Patent Cooperation Treaty Handbook

This Handbook provides detailed coverage of the procedures for international applications under the Patent Cooperation Treaty, plus the general principle of national stages. It includes introductory background material on the PCT, putting it into context in the overall picture of patent practice and assessing the commercial value of the procedure.

The individual stages of the international applications, such as representation, filing the application, processing the application and the search are discussed in detail, with guidance on the best strategies to adopt. Other topics covered include documentation, fees and time limits.
 

• Provides a full commentary to the PCT without any bias towards national laws
• Reproduces the treaty together with related regulations, administrative instructions and forms plus other conventions
• Offers a clear explanation of the jurisdiction, priorities and procedures of the World Intellectual Property Organisations in relation to the PCT
• Updated by two releases a year
• New material included in upcoming releases includes information about:
  • Changes to the PCT Regulations including important new provisions for the excuse of delay in meeting certain PCT time limits in certain circumstances;
  • Provisions for providing indications of availability of international applications for licensing purposes, including the new official PCT form which may be used for this purpose;
  • PCT-PPH (PCT-Patent Prosecution Highway) programs;
  • The ePCT online portal;
  • Recent practical advice from WIPO

2 updating releases published per annum.