# TMEP § 1703: Specific Types of Petitions

> Federal · Agency guidance · In force

URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/TMEP_S1703

## Section

- **Citation:** TMEP § 1703
- **Heading:** Specific Types of Petitions
- **Jurisdiction:** Federal
- **Kind:** Agency guidance
- **Status:** In force
- **Text as of:** August 14, 2026
- **Source:** Compiled text
- **Location:** USPTO TMEP / Chapter 1700 - Petitions, Requests for Reinstatement, and Other Matters Submitted to Director / TMEP § 1703

## Text

A variety of issues may be reviewed on petition.  The following
is a list of issues that commonly arise:
Petitions to Restore an Application Filing Date
.   See
TMEP §1711.
Petitions to Accept Paper Submissions
in
trademark matters are reviewed under
37 C.F.R.
§§2.146(a)(5)
,
2.147
,
2.148
.
See
TMEP
§1709
. Petitions to accept paper submissions in Trademark Trial and
Appeal Board (Board) proceedings due to an outage of the Board's electronic filing system
are reviewed under
37 C.F.R. §§2.146(a)(5)
,
2.147(b)(1)(vi)
,
2.147(d)
,
2.148
.
Petitions to Make Special
.
See
TMEP §1710.
Petitions to Reverse an Examining Attorney’s Holding of Abandonment for Failure to
File a Complete Response to an Office Action
are reviewed under
37 C.F.R.
§2.146(a)(3)
.
See
TMEP §1713.
Petitions to Revive an Application Abandoned Due to Unintentional Delay in
Responding to an Office Action or Notice of Allowance
are reviewed under
37 C.F.R.
§2.66
.
See
TMEP
§§1714–1714.01(g)
.
Petitions to Restore Jurisdiction to the Examining Attorney
may be filed
by the applicant under
37 C.F.R. §2.84
, when the examining attorney does not
have jurisdiction to review an amendment to the application.
See
TMEP
§§1504–1504.05
.
Petitions to Review the Action of an Examining Attorney
.  A petition to
review an examining attorney’s formal requirement may be filed under
37 C.F.R.
§2.63(a)
and
(b)
and
§2.146(a)(1)
, if the requirement is repeated or made
final and the subject matter is procedural in nature and therefore appropriate for petition.
See
TMEP §1704
regarding petitionable subject matter and
TMEP
§1706
regarding the standard of review.
Petitions to Review the Requirement for a
Qualified U.S. Attorney and/or for Information or Declarations Related to Such
Requirement
under
37 C.F.R. §2.11(f)
. If the USPTO issues an Office
action that (1) maintains only a requirement for U.S. counsel and/or additional information
under Rule 2.11 (a), (b), and/or (c), or (2) maintains only the requirement for the
insufficient information fee under
37 C.F.R
to Review the Requirement for a
Qualified U.S. Attorney and/or for Information or Declarations Related to Such
Requirement
under
37 C.F.R. §2.11(f)
. If the USPTO issues an Office
action that (1) maintains only a requirement for U.S. counsel and/or additional information
under Rule 2.11 (a), (b), and/or (c), or (2) maintains only the requirement for the
insufficient information fee under
37 C.F.R. §2.22(b)
in addition to one or all of those
requirements, an applicant’s or registrant’s recourse for seeking review is limited to a
petition to the Director under Rule 2.146.
37 C.F.R. §§2.11(f)
,
2.146
,
2.165
,
2.186
,
7.40
.
Petitions to Reinstate a Cancelled Registration and
Accept a Late Response to an Office Action Issued in Connection with a Section 8 or 71
declaration of use or excusable nonuse
are reviewed under
37 C.F.R. §2.146(a)(5)
and
§2.148
. See
TMEP
§§1604.16
,
1606.12
,
1613.16
,
1708
,
1712.02(b)
.
Petitions to Reinstate a Cancelled Registration
and Accept a Late Response to an Office action Issued in Connection with an Expungement or
Reexamination Proceeding Under Section 16a or 16b
are reviewed under
37 C.F.R. §2.146(a)(5)
and
§2.148
. See
TMEP §1716.04(f)
.
Petitions to Review the Action of the Post Registration Staff
may be
filed if an affidavit of use or excusable nonuse is refused under
15 U.S.C.
§1058
or
§1141k
, a renewal application is refused under
15 U.S.C.
§1059
, or a proposed amendment or correction is refused under
15
U.S.C. §1057
.
See
37 C.F.R §§2.146(a)(2)
,
2.165
,
2.176
,
2.186
;
TMEP §§1604.18
,
1606.14
,
1613.18
.
Petitions to Review the Refusal of the Madrid Processing Unit to Certify an
Application for International Registration
are reviewed under
37 C.F.R.
§2.146(a)(3)
.
See
TMEP
§1902.03(a)
.
Petitions to the Director Regarding an
International Application or Registration
are reviewed under
37 C.F.R. §2.146(a)(3)
.
Petitions to Reverse a Nonfinal Interlocutory Order of the Trademark Trial and
Appeal Board
(
37 C.F.R
Review the Refusal of the Madrid Processing Unit to Certify an
Application for International Registration
are reviewed under
37 C.F.R.
§2.146(a)(3)
.
See
TMEP
§1902.03(a)
.
Petitions to the Director Regarding an
International Application or Registration
are reviewed under
37 C.F.R. §2.146(a)(3)
.
Petitions to Reverse a Nonfinal Interlocutory Order of the Trademark Trial and
Appeal Board
(
37 C.F.R. §2.146(e)(2)
) are reviewed under the standard
of clear error or abuse of discretion, if the subject matter is procedural in nature and
therefore appropriate for consideration on petition.
Riko Enters., Inc. v.
Lindsley
, 198 USPQ 480 (Comm’r Pats. 1977);
see
Trademark
Trial and Appeal Board Manual of Procedure (TBMP)
§§901.02(a)
,
905
.
Petitions to Review a Decision to Deny or Grant a Request for an Extension of Time
to Oppose
(
37 C.F.R. §2.146(e)(1)
) are reviewed to determine
whether the Board correctly applied
37 C.F.R.
§2.101
and
§2.102
.
Petitions to Add or Substitute a Basis After Publication
are reviewed
under
37
C.F.R. §2.146(a)(2)
.
See
37 C.F.R.
§2.35(b)(2)
;
TMEP §§806.03(j)-806.03(j)(iii)
.
Petitions to Abandon an Affidavit or Declaration of Incontestability
Under §15 of the Trademark Act,
15 U.S.C.
§1065
, are reviewed under
37 C.F.R.
§2.146(a)(3)
.
See
37 C.F.R.
§2.167(j)
;
TMEP §§1605
,
1605.03
,
1704
,
1707
.
See
TMEP §1607
and
TBMP
§§303
,
307
,
308
, and
309
regarding petitions to cancel registrations under
15 U.S.C.
§1064
, which are handled by the Board.
[top]

## Nearby sections

- [TMEP § 1701 Statutory Authority of Director](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/TMEP_S1701.md)
- [TMEP § 1702 Petitions to the Director Under 37 C.F.R. §2.146 - In General](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/TMEP_S1702.md)
- [TMEP § 1703 Specific Types of Petitions](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/TMEP_S1703.md)
- [TMEP § 1704 Petitionable Subject Matter](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/TMEP_S1704.md)
- [TMEP § 1705 Petition Procedure](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/TMEP_S1705.md)
- [TMEP § 1705.01 Standing](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/TMEP_S1705.01.md)
- [TMEP § 1705.02 Petition Fee](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/TMEP_S1705.02.md)
- [TMEP § 1705.03 Evidence and Proof of Facts](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/TMEP_S1705.03.md)
- [TMEP § 1705.04 Timeliness](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/TMEP_S1705.04.md)
- [TMEP § 1705.05 Due Diligence](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/TMEP_S1705.05.md)
- [TMEP § 1705.06 Stay or Suspension of Pending Matters](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/TMEP_S1705.06.md)
- [TMEP § 1705.07(a) Requirement for Representation of Non-U.S.-domiciled Petitioner](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/TMEP_S1705.07(a).md)
- [TMEP § 1705.07(b) Signature of Petition](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/TMEP_S1705.07(b).md)
- [TMEP § 1705.08 Request for Reconsideration of Denial of Petition](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/TMEP_S1705.08.md)

---

Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/TMEP_S1703. Check the current official text before relying on it. Not legal advice.