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Question:
List a situation that does not constitute a license so as to prohibit claiming small entity status.
Answer:
The following situations do not constitute a license so as to prohibit claiming small entity status:
- a use license to the Government resulting from a rights determination;
- a use license to the Government resulting from Federal agency action allowing the Federal employee inventor to obtain or retain title to the invention; or
- a use license to a Federal agency resulting from retention of rights by the inventor, provided the conditions under 35 U.S.C. 401.9 for retention of rights by an inventor employed by a small business concern or nonprofit organization contractor are met, and the license is equivalent to the license the Federal agency would have received had the contractor elected to retain title.
Chapter Details:
The answer to this question can be found in chapter 500 of the MPEP. This chapter covers Receipt and Handling of Mail and Papers.
The answer is from the 9th Edition, Revision 01.2024, Published November 2024. Depending on future changes to the MPEP, the question and answer may or may not be applicable in later Editions or revisions.
Section Summary:
This question and answer comes from section 509.02 of the MPEP. The following is a brief summary of section 509.02.
509.02 Small Entity Status — Definitions
This section covers small entity status, which is a reduction of certain fees by 60% for independent inventors and non-profit organizations. The fees which are reduced by 60% for small entities are covered in this section.
This section also outlines the specific individuals who may qualify for small entity status as well as a definition of nonprofit organizations.
A discussion on the location of small entities, rights of the inventor and a transfer of those rights, and rights held by government organizations are also covered.