The 2-1 majority opinion in Tafas v. Doll upheld rules that requires a more cumbersome process for requesting continuing patent applications and other rules that sharply restrict the number of patent claims on an application unless the applicant files so-called examination support documents, which are detailed and expensive to produce. Tafas v. Doll, No. 2008-1352 (Fed. Cir.).
The patent bar’s sole victory in Tafas v. Doll was the decision’s invalidation of the PTO rule limiting the number of continuing patent applications, or additional applications for the same invention filed before the first application is patented or abandoned. The Federal Circuit deemed that rule “inconsistent” with patent law mandates.
