A bill to carry into effect certain provisions of the Patent Cooperation Treaty.
Latest action. Referred to Senate Committee on Judiciary.
Provides for the implementation of specified provisions of the Patent Cooperation Treaty. Provides that the Patent Office shall act as a Receiving Office for international applications filed by nationals or residents of the United States, and may also act (1) as a Receiving Office for international applications; and (2) as an International Searching Authority with respect to international applications. States that a national application shall be entitled to the right of priority based on a prior filed international application which designated at least one country other than the United States. Sets forth the order of priorities as between other applications. Specifies the procedure for withdrawal of international applications and for review of actions of other authorities. Provides that the filing of an international application in a country other than the United States on an invention made in this country shall be considered to constitute the filing of an application in a foreign country, whether or not the United States is designated in that international application. Enumerates the items to be filed by the applicant in the Patent Office for commencement of the national stage of processing. States that all questions of substance and procedure in all international application designating the United States shall be determined as in the case of national applications regularly filed in the Patent Office. Provides that the publication, under the treaty, of an international application shall confer no rights and shall have no effect under this title other than that of a printed publication. Specifies the fees required and permitted to be charged by the Patent Office. Provides for the allocation of funds appropriated to the Patent Office, to the Department of State for the purpose payment of the share on the part of the United States, to the working capital fund established under the Patent Cooperation Treaty. Makes conforming amendments to the patents provisions of the United States Code relating to: (1) conditions for patentability; novelty and loss of right to patent; (2) specification of the invention; (3) drawings; and (4) presumption of validity; defenses.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in Senate" stage on September 21, 1973. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on September 21, 1973: Referred to Senate Committee on Judiciary.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the Senate
- Passage by the House
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 93rd Congress (1973-74), 651 of the 23,396 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 2.8 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
JOHN MCCLELLAN (D-AR) introduced it on September 21, 1973. No cosponsors are recorded.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on September 21, 1973, 19347 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 19347 days ago, on September 21, 1973.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 93rd Congress has not finished by January 3, 1975 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- SenateIn committee, no floor vote yet
- HouseAwaits Senate passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers