Litigation manual

This manual provides guidance on the administrative procedure for patent and design right proceedings.

It includes detailed desk instructions on the practices and procedures for formal examination and processing of statements and evidence filed in inter partes proceedings before the Comptroller and in the formal processing of ex parte proceedings.

We update the manual regularly to include changes in practice and procedure. Changes are indicated by a line in the margin, and there is a schedule of the latest changes in the Introduction.

Some of the guidance contained in the October 2007 manual may still apply in certain circumstances and is available in the Litigation manual archive.