Patent petitions

If you would like to make a request for the USPTO to take certain action in your patent or patent application, you may file a written submission known as a "petition." The Office of Petitions (OPET) reviews and decides most patent-related petitions, including requests for supervisory review by the USPTO Director, situations not specifically covered in the patent rules, suspension of patent rules, and other matters delegated to OPET. However, there are other areas within the Patents organization that process petitions, depending on the action being requested and the associated laws, rules, and USPTO policies. These additional areas include, for example, the Office of Patent Legal Administration (OPLA), the International Patent Legal Administration (IPLA), the Office of Data Management (ODM), the Central Reexamination Unit (CRU), and the various Technology Centers (TC).