SOP 2 (rev. 11) Addendum

The Addendum amends Section II.B.1 of PTAB Standard Operating Procedure 2 (Rev. 11) so that the Advisory Committee has five members, one from each of five listed USPTO business units, with stated exclusions for certain individuals. It also allows additional individuals, such as technical or subject matter experts or administrative support staff, to participate in the Committee's work. The Addendum changes who sits on the Advisory Committee, which matters to anyone whose matter may come before it. It does not set any substantive standard, deadline or filing requirement for petitioners or patent owners. The exclusions, such as members of the original panel and persons involved in examining the challenged patent, show who will not be on the Committee for a given case. The excerpt names no statute, rule or decision as a basis. It does not describe the Committee's function, which sits in the rest of SOP 2, not provided here. WHAT IT DOES: Amends Section II.B.1 so the Advisory Committee has five members, one representative from each of: the Office of the Under Secretary (not including the Director or Deputy Director); the Patent Trial Appeal Board (not including members of the original panel for each case under review); the Office of the Commissioner for Patents (not including the Commissioner for Patents and any persons involved in the examination of the challenged patent); the Office of the General Counsel; and the Office of Policy and International Affairs. Additional individuals, such as technical or subject matter experts or administrative support staff, may participate in the Committee's work. WHO AND WHEN: Dated August 12, 2025, and applies to SOP 2 (Rev. 11) Section II.B.1 on Advisory Committee composition. The text gives no separate effective date and does not say which cases it covers beyond the reference to cases under review. KEY QUOTE: "Additional individuals, such as technical or subject matter experts, or others assisting in an administrative support capacity, may participate in the work of the Advisory Committee." (p. 1) EARLIER GUIDANCE AFFECTED: Amends Section II.B.1 of Standard Operating Procedure 2 (Rev. 11); no other memoranda, rules or decisions are named in the document. PRACTICE TIP: Read Section II.B.1 of SOP 2 (Rev. 11) together with this Addendum when assessing the Advisory Committee's makeup, and do not rely on the earlier composition. Check the full SOP 2 for the Committee's role, since the Addendum addresses only membership.