Guidelines for Examination:PART B: CHAPTER IV SEARCH PROCEDURE AND STRATEGY, 1. Procedure prior to searching, 1.2 Formal deficiencies

Guidelines for Examination
PART B
CHAPTER IV SEARCH PROCEDURE AND STRATEGY
1. Procedure prior to searching
1.2 Formal deficiencies

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PART B
CHAPTER IV SEARCH PROCEDURE AND STRATEGY
1. Procedure prior to searching

1.1 Analysis of the application

1.3 Documents cited in the application

1.2	Formal deficiencies

The search is carried out in parallel with the formalities examination. If the examiner notices any formal shortcomings which have been overlooked by the Receiving Section, he calls these, by means of an internal communication, to the attention of the Receiving Section (or of the Examining Division in the case of an additional search requested by that Division) which takes appropriate action. However, the examiner should not repeat the tasks of the Receiving Section and should not undertake any time-consuming enquiries into these matters. Such deficiencies which the examiner might notice include:

Rules 26 to 36

(i)	physical deficiencies of the application (see A-III, 3.2), including:

Art. 91(1)(b)

Rule 40

(a)

no paper and/or no electronic sequence listing (Rule 27a(1), (2) and OJ Suppl. No 2, 11/1998);

(b)

incorrect sequence and/or positioning of page numbering and/or failure to use Arabic numerals in page numbering (Rule 35(8));

(c)

presence of drawings in the description and/or claims (Rule 35(11));

(d)

presence of erasures and/or alterations in the application documents, such that the authenticity of the content and/or the requirements for good reproduction are jeopardised (Rule 35(14));

(ii)	presence of prohibited matter in the application:

Art. 53(a)

Rule 34(1)(a)

Rule 34(1)(b)

(a)

which is contrary to "ordre public" (see A-III, 8.1, C-II, 7.2 and C-IV, 3.1 to 3.3); or

(b)

constituting disparaging statements (see A-III, 8.2). Note, however, that fair comment as referred to in C-II, 7.3 is permitted;

(iii)

failure to comply with the provisions relating to the deposition of biological material (see A-IV, 4), in particular with regard to the correct identification in the application of the depository institution and accession number of the biological material assigned to the deposited material by the depository institution (Rule 28(1)(c), see G 2/93, OJ 5/1995, 275 and A-IV, 4.2).

Rule 28

(iv)	failure to correctly identify the application as a divisional application within the meaning of Art. 76(1) (see A-IV, 1.3.2, Rule 26(2)(e), Art. 91(1)(d) and Rule 41(1)).