Diminishing Success Rate in Successive Office Action Responses

Before engaging with a client in a new patent application I make a point of reviewing the overall grant rate statistics. Typically, the acceptance rate for patent applications in the United States hovers right around 50%. In 2020, the grant rate was 53% meaning that nearly half of the patent applications submitted never resulted in a patent.

While the odds may be slightly in an applicant’s favor, it is important to understand that the battle for a patent is an uphill one from the start. During prosecution, an applicant may receive a number of rejections. In my experience, most examiners are not willing to grant a patent after a response to a second office action. This article and graphic seem to arrive at the same conclusion.

Click here for article and graph outlining the success rate of successive responses to rejections by the USPTO.