Terminal Disclaimers and USPTO Data

Berks, Andrew (Sara_K_Davis@sbphrd.com)
Mon, 18 Oct 1999 08:55:00 -0400

I haven't yet encountered the problem Edlyn mentions, where the disclaimer date
can't be determined from the face of the patent. But if you're using the USPTO
site as an information source, be aware that terminal disclaimer information, or
even the fact of its existence, does NOT appear in the text-mode data (full text
or otherwise) in patents retrieved from this database. The front page must be
viewed as an image to determine whether or not there is a terminal disclaimer.
I'm not sure what the purpose is of omitting this important data from the text
version, but if the expiry date of a patent is important, be sure to look at a
front page image.

Sara Davis, SmithKline Beecham