General Practitioner IP Problem Solver
Download the General Practitioner IP Problem Solver here.
This quarter’s IP Portfolio Management Newsletter brings two topics for your consideration. First, we have attached a Harness IP resource that can help you navigate a wide variety of IP issues you may encounter on a daily basis. Second, on the more technical side of patent prosecution practice, we report on a new Patent Cooperation Treaty development at the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
General Practitioner IP Problem Solver
Most IP questions don’t arrive with a lot of warning. A new product is about to launch, a trade show is next week, someone sends in an unsolicited idea, or a photo gets pulled off the internet for an ad — and suddenly there’s a decision to make, often quickly.
We write to share a resource our firm put together for exactly those moments: the General Practitioner IP Problem Solver. It’s a short, plain-English flip book that walks through the IP situations businesses run into most often — across patents, trademarks, advertising and licensing, and copyright. For each one it lays out what to ask, what to consider, and what to do, so you can spot the issue and the deadline early, before it becomes a bigger problem.
It’s meant as a practical reference to keep handy, not legal advice — but our hope is it helps you recognize the moments that are worth a closer look.
If any of these situations are live for you right now, or you’d just like to talk through how it applies to your portfolio, we are always glad to connect.
The attached guide is for general informational purposes and is not legal advice; reviewing it does not create an attorney-client relationship.
USPTO’s PIER Pilot Program is Launched
The USPTO has launched a new pilot — the PCT Informed Examination Request (PIER) Program — and it could affect applications you already have on file. Beginning May 21, 2026, the office will start issuing “requirements for information” in selected unexamined national stage applications (those that entered the U.S. through a PCT filing). The USPTO is targeting older applications in high-pendency technology areas, and it’s favoring cases where the international search already flagged a closely relevant reference (an “X” or “Y” citation).
If one of your applications is selected, you’ll receive a formal request (form PTO-2357) asking you to choose one of three paths: proceed with examination, delay examination for 12 months, or expressly abandon the application. If you proceed, you’ll also have the option to file a preliminary amendment to put the application in better shape before an examiner picks it up. The catch worth knowing: a complete, timely reply (on form PTO/SB/478) is required — miss it, and the application can go abandoned. Selection is entirely at the USPTO’s discretion, and there’s no way to opt in, opt out, or petition your way around it.
The practical takeaway is to make sure these notices don’t slip through. They’ll be indexed in the file with the document code “PIER.RFI,” and the response deadline matters. If you’d like to talk through how this could affect your portfolio — or whether a preliminary amendment strategy makes sense for any of your pending cases — we’re glad to help.
This update is for general informational purposes and is not legal advice.