Agent or Common Representative and General Power of Attorney

37 CFR 1.455 Representation in international applications.

(a) Applicants of international applications may be represented

by attorneys or agents registered to practice before the United States

Patent and Trademark Office or by an applicant appointed as a common

representative (

PCT Art. 49

,

Rules

4.8

and

90

and §

11.9

). If applicants have not appointed an attorney

or agent or one of the applicants to represent them, and there is more than

one applicant, the applicant first named in the request and who is entitled

to file in the U.S. Receiving Office shall be considered to be the common

representative of all the applicants. An attorney or agent having the right

to practice before a national office with which an international application

is filed and for which the United States is an International Searching

Authority or International Preliminary Examining Authority may be appointed

to represent the applicants in the international application before that

authority. An attorney or agent may appoint an associate attorney or agent

who shall also then be of record (

PCT Rule 90.1(d)

). The

appointment of an attorney or agent, or of a common representative, revokes

any earlier appointment unless otherwise indicated (

PCT Rule 90.6(b) and

(c)

).

(b) Appointment of an agent, attorney or common representative

(

PCT

Rule 4.8

) must be effected either in the Request

form, signed by applicant, in the Demand form, signed by applicant, or in a

separate power of attorney submitted either to the United States Receiving

Office or to the International Bureau.

(c) Powers of attorney and revocations thereof should be

submitted to the United States Receiving Office until the issuance of the

international search report.

(d) The addressee for correspondence will be as indicated in

section

108

of the Administrative Instructions.

PCT Rule 90

Agents and Common Representatives

*****

90.4 Manner of Appointment of Agent or Common

Representative

ernational Bureau.

(c) Powers of attorney and revocations thereof should be

submitted to the United States Receiving Office until the issuance of the

international search report.

(d) The addressee for correspondence will be as indicated in

section

108

of the Administrative Instructions.

PCT Rule 90

Agents and Common Representatives

*****

90.4 Manner of Appointment of Agent or Common

Representative

(a) The appointment of an agent shall be effected by the

applicant signing the request, the demand or a separate power of

attorney. Where there are two or more applicants, the appointment of a

common agent or common representative shall be effected by each

applicant signing, at his choice, the request, the demand or a separate

power of attorney.

(b) Subject to

Rule 90.5

, a

separate power of attorney shall be submitted to either the receiving

Office or the International Bureau, provided that, where a power of

attorney appoints an agent under

Rule 90.1(b)

,

(b-

bis

), (c), or (d)(ii), it shall be submitted

to the International Searching Authority, the Authority specified for

supplementary search or the International Preliminary Examining

Authority, as the case may be.

(c) If the separate power of attorney is not signed, or if

the required separate power of attorney is missing, or if the indication

of the name or address of the appointed person does not comply with

Rule 4.4

, the power of attorney shall be

considered nonexistent unless the defect is corrected.

(d) Subject to paragraph (e), any receiving Office, any

International Searching Authority, any Authority competent to carry out

supplementary searches, any International Preliminary Examining

Authority and the International Bureau may waive the requirement under

paragraph (b) that a separate power of attorney be submitted to it, in

which case paragraph (c) shall not apply.

the defect is corrected.

(d) Subject to paragraph (e), any receiving Office, any

International Searching Authority, any Authority competent to carry out

supplementary searches, any International Preliminary Examining

Authority and the International Bureau may waive the requirement under

paragraph (b) that a separate power of attorney be submitted to it, in

which case paragraph (c) shall not apply.

(e) Where the agent or the common representative submits

any notice of withdrawal referred to in

Rules

90bis.1

to

90bis.4

, the requirement

under paragraph (b) for a separate power of attorney shall not be waived

under paragraph (d).

*****

Where an appointment of an agent or common representative is effected by

a separate power of attorney, that power of attorney must be submitted to either the

receiving Office or the International Bureau. However, a power of attorney appointing an

agent or subagent to represent the applicant specifically before the International

Searching Authority or the International Preliminary Examining Authority must be

submitted directly to that Authority. See

PCT Rule 90.4(b)

.

The Customer Number Practice set forth in

MPEP § 403

may not be

used in the international phase to appoint an agent or designate a correspondence

address. A power of attorney making use of the Customer Number Practice in the

international phase to indicate the name or address of an appointed person will be

considered nonexistent unless the defect is corrected. See

PCT Rule 90.4(c)

.

A Customer Number may be used in the international phase solely for purposes of viewing

the international application in the USPTO patent electronic filing system. See

MPEP §

1809

.

I.

“GENERAL” POWER OF ATTORNEY

PCT Rule 90

Agents and Common Representatives

*****

90.5 General Power of Attorney

n appointed person will be

considered nonexistent unless the defect is corrected. See

PCT Rule 90.4(c)

.

A Customer Number may be used in the international phase solely for purposes of viewing

the international application in the USPTO patent electronic filing system. See

MPEP §

1809

.

I.

“GENERAL” POWER OF ATTORNEY

PCT Rule 90

Agents and Common Representatives

*****

90.5 General Power of Attorney

(a) Appointment of an agent in relation to a particular

international application may be effected by referring in the

request, the demand or a separate notice to an existing separate

power of attorney appointing that agent to represent the applicant

in relation to any international application which may be filed by

that applicant (i.e., a “general power of attorney”), provided

that:

(i) the general power of attorney has been

deposited in accordance with paragraph (b), and

(ii) a copy of it is attached to the request, the

demand or the separate notice, as the case may be; that copy

need not be signed.

(b) The general power of attorney shall be deposited

with the receiving Office, provided that, where it appoints an agent

under

Rule 90.1(b), (c) or

(d)(ii)

, it shall be deposited with the

International Searching Authority, the Authority specified for

supplementary search or the International Preliminary Examining

Authority, as the case may be.

(c) Any receiving Office, any International Searching

Authority, any Authority competent to carry out supplementary

searches and any International Preliminary Examining Authority may

waive the requirement under paragraph (a)(ii) that a copy of the

general power of attorney is attached to the request, the demand or

the separate notice, as the case may be.

ry Examining

Authority, as the case may be.

(c) Any receiving Office, any International Searching

Authority, any Authority competent to carry out supplementary

searches and any International Preliminary Examining Authority may

waive the requirement under paragraph (a)(ii) that a copy of the

general power of attorney is attached to the request, the demand or

the separate notice, as the case may be.

(d) Notwithstanding paragraph (c), where the agent

submits any notice of withdrawal referred to in

Rules

90bis.1

to

90bis.4

to the receiving

Office, the Authority specified for supplementary search, the

International Preliminary Examining Authority or the International

Bureau, as the case may be, a copy of the general power of attorney

shall be submitted to that Office, Authority or Bureau.

*****

“General” powers of attorney are recognized for the purpose of

filing and prosecuting an international application before the international

authorities. See

PCT Rule 90.5

.

Any general power of attorney must be filed with the receiving

Office if the appointment was for the purposes of the international phase generally,

or with the International Searching Authority or International Preliminary Examining

Authority if the appointment was specifically to represent the applicant before that

Authority. The appointment will then be effective in relation to any particular

application filed by that applicant provided that the general power of attorney is

referred to in the request, the Demand or a separate notice, and that a copy of the

general power of attorney is attached to that request, Demand or separate notice.

That copy of the signed original need not, itself, be separately signed.

II

ority. The appointment will then be effective in relation to any particular

application filed by that applicant provided that the general power of attorney is

referred to in the request, the Demand or a separate notice, and that a copy of the

general power of attorney is attached to that request, Demand or separate notice.

That copy of the signed original need not, itself, be separately signed.

II.

WAIVER OF REQUIREMENT FOR A POWER OF ATTORNEY

Pursuant to

PCT Rules 90.4(d)

and

90.5(c)

, which are applicable to international applications

having an international filing date on or after January 1, 2004, the receiving

Office, International Bureau, International Searching Authority and International

Preliminary Examining Authority may waive the requirement for a separate power of

attorney or copy of the general power of attorney in all cases except with respect

to notice of withdrawals under

PCT Rule

90bis

(i.e., notices withdrawing

international applications, designations, priority claims, demands or elections).

The USPTO, when acting in its capacity as a receiving Office, International

Searching Authority, or International Preliminary Examining Authority, will in most

cases waive the requirement for a separate power of attorney and copy of the general

power of attorney. However, a separate power of attorney or copy of the general

power of attorney may still be required in certain cases, e.g., where an agent’s

authority to act on behalf of the applicant is in doubt or where waiver could result

in harm to an applicant as in the case of the removal of an applicant.

Model power of attorney and general power of attorney forms are

available online from WIPO’s website (

www.wipo.int/pct/en/index.html

).

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