USPTOObservations & Oppositions builder

Request for ex parte reexamination

35 U.S.C. 302; 37 CFR 1.510

A request that the USPTO re-examine an issued patent over prior patents and publications, for roughly an eighth to a quarter of IPR fees and with no statutory estoppel.

Start an invalidity search How IPtorch builds it
New question: claim 1 over D1 and D2 Limitation D1 D2 1a 1b 1c 1d 1e Disclosed col. 3, ll. 5-9 Disclosed col. 4, ll. 12-19 Partial Fig. 2 Disclosed col. 6, ll. 1-4 Not found Disclosed col. 5, ll. 22-30 Disclosed col. 7, ll. 3-8
Every limitation, a status and a location.

At a glance

Until expiry plus 6 years

USD 6,775 streamlined or USD 13,545 full request (checked 22 Sep 2026)

Who can file
Any person, including the patent owner, unless estopped by an IPR or post-grant review final written decision.
Deadline
None. Any time in the period of enforceability, generally expiry plus 6 years (MPEP 2211).
Official fee
USD 6,775 streamlined, up to 40 counted pages, or USD 13,545 full; small entity USD 2,710 or USD 5,418.
Language
English. Translate the necessary and pertinent parts of any non-English art.
Anonymous
Only through a registered practitioner who signs (MPEP 2214). A requester filing alone signs and is named.
How it is filed
Patent Center as a new reexamination submission, or paper to Mail Stop Ex Parte Reexam by Priority Mail Express or hand.
Effect
If a substantial new question is found, reexamination is ordered; claims are confirmed, amended or cancelled by certificate.
Party status
Limited. No appeal, discovery or hearing, and the request cannot be withdrawn once filed.

What it is

Request for ex parte reexamination, in brief

Ex parte reexamination asks the USPTO Central Reexamination Unit to reopen examination of an issued patent over prior patents and printed publications. The request sets out each substantial new question of patentability and applies the art to every claim for which reexamination is requested.

It is a prosecution comparison, not a short IPR petition: each question must be a new, non-cumulative teaching, or old art in a new light. The requester files one paper and at most one reply, and cannot appeal, attend interviews or withdraw the request.

Grounds it can carry

  • Anticipation by a single prior patent or printed publication35 U.S.C. 102 via 302 and 1.552(a)
  • Obviousness over one reference or a stated combination35 U.S.C. 103 via 302 and 1.552(a)

Use it when

  • A patent or printed publication reads on the claims and you want them cancelled or narrowed.
  • The 1-year IPR bar has passed, or the budget will not carry an IPR.
  • You want no statutory estoppel, or the challenge should run through a practitioner for an undisclosed real party in interest.

Choose another route when

How IPtorch builds it

From search to filing, minus the signature.

The invalidity search runs on into this filing when it ends, with no second click. Three model families take turns, so a draft is never checked by the model that wrote it.

  1. 1SearchClaims split into limitations, thousands of candidates screened, at least 50 references read in full.Gemini models read and check
  2. 2Claim mapA verbatim quotation and its location behind every limitation.Every cell checkable
  3. 3DraftWrites the papers in the office's format and language.Claude Opus 5.5 (Anthropic)
  4. 4ReviewChecks each citation against its document and builds the forms.Sol 6 (OpenAI)
  5. 5AdjudicateHigh strength: a third family rules on every objection.Gemini 3.1 Pro (Google)
  6. 6FolderUnsigned PDFs, ready for a professional to review, sign and file.Nothing is filed

What the builder does for this filing

  • IPtorch frames each substantial new question against the art of record: what the reference teaches, what the examiner had, and why it is new and non-cumulative.
  • It anchors the questions to the limitation that secured allowance and applies the art to every requested claim, limitation by limitation, with page, column and line pinpoints.
  • It counts pages for the streamlined fee, where claim charts, arguing declarations and conclusions all count toward the 40-page limit.
  • It refuses 101, 112, public use and conduct grounds, and drops any listed reference that no question or proposed rejection applies.

In the folder

  • PTO/SB/57 transmittal dataField values for the request transmittal form
  • Request for ex parte reexaminationEach substantial new question and proposed rejection under its own heading
  • List of patents and publications relied onPTO/SB/08 equivalent, listing only references actually applied
  • Appendix A: copy of the patentThe whole patent with every certificate and disclaimer
  • Appendix C: copies of every cited documentWith labelled translations of the pertinent parts beside the originals
  • Certificate of service and certificationsService on the owner and the requester certifications under 1.510(b)
  • Fee sheet and page countStreamlined or full track, page count, deposit account authorisation

Builder strength

You choose how hard it is checked.

You pay for the tokens the sessions use, at the models' list prices plus a 30% fee, not for the time allowed. How pricing works

Low

40 minutesabout 10 million tokens (roughly $10 to $30)

  1. Opus 5.5 drafts the submission
  2. Sol 6 builds and checks the final forms

Medium

2 hoursabout 20 million tokens (roughly $20 to $60)

  1. Opus 5.5 drafts the submission
  2. Sol 6 reviews and rebuilds the content
  3. Opus 5.5 builds the filing folder
  4. Sol 6 checks the form

High

5 to 6 hoursabout 60 million tokens (roughly $50 to $200)

  1. Opus 5.5 drafts the submission
  2. Sol 6 runs a deep prior-art search
  3. Opus 5.5 rebuilds the submission against the evidence
  4. Sol 6 attacks it as an adversarial examiner
  5. Gemini 3.1 Pro adjudicates the objections
  6. Opus 5.5 applies the fixes and builds the filing folder
  7. Scripted checks of the filing folder
  8. Sol 6 audits the whole folder
  9. Convergence gate

If the gate fails, one repair round: opus 5.5 repairs what the gate found, sol 6 audits the repair, convergence gate, again.

What stays with you

You review, sign and file.

  • Sign with your own S-signature and typed name, with registration number if you are a practitioner.
  • Confirm the 315(e)(1) and 325(e)(1) estoppel position, and the anonymity affirmation where it applies.
  • Serve the full copy on the patent owner and sign the certificate of service.
  • Press Submit in Patent Center and pay the fee, or send the paper request by Priority Mail Express.

Where these go wrong

What the builder guards against.

  • More than 40 counted pages on a streamlined fee with no authorisation to charge the difference: charts, arguing declarations and conclusions all count.
  • Re-arguing art of record without a new light, or resting on KSR alone, raises no substantial new question.

More filings in United States

USPTO, PTAB and federal courts

All 17 filings

Start with the evidence.

Upload the patent or enter its number. The invalidity search charts every claim, and the builder takes it from there.

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Facts checked against the office's rules on 22 September 2026. IPtorch is not a law firm and this page is not legal advice. The builder's output is unsigned work product for a registered professional to review, sign and file; nothing is filed and no fee is paid for you. Confirm current requirements, fees and deadlines with the receiving office.