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Patent Term Adjustment (PTA)
Practical Law Glossary Item 2-543-3460 (Approx. 3 pages)
Glossary
Patent Term Adjustment (PTA)
A way of extending a patent's term.
Under Section 154 of the Patent Act, if the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) fails to examine a patent application and issue a patent within certain deadlines, the term of the resulting patent may be extended based on the length of the delay (35 U.S.C. § 154). Three broad categories of USPTO delays may result in a patent term adjustment. A patent may be entitled to a term adjustment if:
- The USPTO fails to perform certain examination acts within prescribed times during examination of the patent application.
- The USPTO fails to issue the patent within three years after the patent application filing date.
- The patent application is involved in an interference proceeding or an appeal, or is subject to a secrecy order.
Section 154 also identifies patent applicant delays that reduce the length of any adjustment.
A patent term adjustment should be distinguished from a patent term extension under Section 156 of the Patent Act (35 U.S.C. § 156).
For more information about patent term adjustment, see Practice Note, Patent Term Adjustment.