A protest is a means for a third party to challenge whether a pending application should issue. This section covers protests under 37 C.F.R. 1.291 including show may submit them, what should be filed with the protest, servicing a protest, and when to submit a protest.

Protests are ex parte matters. The examiner will not communicate further with the protester once the protest has been received. This section also briefly discusses protests and compliance issues.

• Review Ed9 10.2019 1901.02