Patent Ethics & Professional Responsibility Flashcards
7 cards from real Patent Bar Exam practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Patent Ethics & Professional Responsibility flashcards as text
A patent practitioner learns that a client made a material misrepresentation to the USPTO during prosecution. The client refuses to authorize corrective action. What is the practitioner's ethical obligation?
Answer: Withdraw from representation if the client refuses to correct the fraud
Under 37 C.F.R. § 10.23 and OED rules, a practitioner must withdraw if the client refuses to correct a material misrepresentation to the USPTO.
Which of the following best describes the 'duty of candor' under 37 C.F.R. § 1.56?
Answer: A duty of each individual associated with filing to disclose all known material information
Rule 1.56 imposes a duty on each individual associated with a patent application to disclose all information material to patentability.
A practitioner is asked by a client to sign an oath on behalf of the inventor who is unavailable. Under 37 C.F.R. § 1.64, what is the appropriate course of action?
Answer: Execute a substitute statement if the inventor is deceased, legally incapacitated, or cannot be found after diligent effort
Under 37 C.F.R. § 1.64, a substitute statement may be filed when the inventor is deceased, legally incapacitated, or cannot be reached after diligent effort.
Which action constitutes 'inequitable conduct' that can render a patent unenforceable?
Answer: Failing to disclose known material information with an intent to deceive the USPTO
Inequitable conduct requires both materiality and intent to deceive; withholding known material information with deceptive intent can render a patent unenforceable.
An attorney represents both a startup and its lead investor in a patent matter. No adverse interests currently exist. What must the attorney do?
Answer: Obtain informed written consent from both clients acknowledging the joint representation
Even when interests are currently aligned, joint representation requires informed written consent from all clients due to the potential for future conflicts.
Under USPTO rules, a registered patent agent may do which of the following?
Answer: Prepare and prosecute patent applications before the USPTO
A registered patent agent is authorized to prepare and prosecute patent applications before the USPTO but may not practice law in other respects.
A practitioner discovers after a patent issues that prior art was inadvertently not disclosed. What is the best course of action?
Answer: File a reissue application or request for ex parte reexamination to cure the inequitable conduct
Filing a reissue or requesting reexamination allows correction of errors arising from failure to disclose material prior art after a patent issues.
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