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<p>What Richard said. And recall that for each account, the USPTO
uses a particular data field to keep extremely close track of
whether the accountholder has or has not shown a photo ID and so
on to prove exactly who they are. And the various USPTO systems
then permit or deny access depending on the status of that data
field. There has been a "system creep" of the use of that field,
most recently for access to the TEAS functions. I would be
astonished if the system creep were to do anything other than
eventually reach all USPTO systems that use any kind of login.
And I would also be astonished if the system creep requiring user
login were to do anything other than to eventually reach nearly
all USPTO systems.<br>
</p>
<p>Meaning, if you were to try to use a single account as if it were
a multi-person role-based account, it would quickly come to light
in the USPTO login/authentication workflow.</p>
<p>Coming back around to the starting point of the earlier poster,
what all of this means is that if the USPTO were to set a goal of
being nice to its paying customers, the USPTO would from the
beginning of each software initiative) design into the system
collaborative workflow, project sharing, access sharing,
second-pair-of eyes sharing, and so on.</p>
<p>The challenge is that as a general rule, such "sharing" functions
need to have been designed in from the very beginnings of the
system design. It is almost always nearly impossible to "add in"
these kinds of sharing functions in any sensible way if you wait
until long after the system is fully designed and deployed and
only then try to do it.</p>
<p>To give an example of doing it right, the ePCT system was
designed from the very outset so that an eOwner could selectively
give access to selected applications to others, including giving
eOwner access to others. From the outset, there was the ability
to "share" an address book of frequently used inventor names,
applicant names, and so on. From the outset, it was (and still
is) the ability to pick and choose levels of access (eViewer,
eOwner, eEditor) to give to various colleagues, clients, inventors
and so on. From the outset, the group of people being given any
particular level of access could be specifically tied to
individual choices about particular applications (not linked in
any required all-or-nothing way to "all files having a particular
customer number" or "all files that I the attorney get to see when
I log in").</p>
<p>In Patent Center, if you as an attorney have access to, say, 2037
applications, and if you decide to "sponsor" a particular
paralegal, then the only choice is, that paralegal gets access to
2037 applications. It is impossible for you the attorney to be
selective about which of those 2037 applications the paralegal has
access to.</p>
<p>In Assignment Center it is, apparently, impossible to give any
kind of access in your own workbench to any colleague. No shared
access for workflow, no shared access for sharing "stored data".</p>
<p>And the problem is that if the software developer failed to
design in any kind of shared access starting at the beginning, it
almost always turns out to be either impossible, or only very
clunky, to try to graft on any shared access to another person.</p>
<p>To give another example of USPTO getting it wrong on "shared
acccess", look at Financial Manager (FM). If a new employee
starts work with your firm and needs to be given "shared access",
then the click path to onboard that new employee in FM is some
number of clicks (these days around eight clicks) times the number
of payment methods. So if you have, say, ten payment methods,
then the onboarding process is eighty mouse clicks. It is
impossible to tell FM with just a few mouse clicks "give this new
person access to the following selected seven payment methods" or
"give this person access to all of our firm's payment methods".
When an employee has a "last day of work", the process in FM to
turn off that employee's access to all of the ten payment methods
will be ... sorry to say ... a corresponding eighty mouse clicks.</p>
<p>All because the setup of FM, from the outset, failed to be smart
about how shared access would work.<br>
</p>
<p>In contrast, in ePCT, the "last day of work" click path is only a
few mouse clicks regardless of the number of applications
involved. But this is the case only because the designers of ePCT
had designed that system from day one to have sensible shared
access.<br>
</p>
<div class="moz-cite-prefix">On 2/6/2024 2:44 PM, Richard Schafer
via Patentpractice wrote:<br>
</div>
<blockquote type="cite"
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Goudy Old Style",serif;color:#1F497D">I’m
pretty sure that the PTO rules require every account to be
for a single person only and disallow this kind of
role-based multi-person account.
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Goudy Old Style",serif;color:#1F497D"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Goudy Old Style",serif;color:#1F497D;mso-fareast-language:ZH-CN">Best
regards,<br>
<b>Richard A. Schafer | Schafer IP Law</b></span><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Garamond",serif;color:#1F497D;mso-fareast-language:ZH-CN"><br>
</span><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Goudy Old Style",serif;color:#1F497D;mso-fareast-language:ZH-CN">P.O.
Box 230081 | Houston, TX 77223<br>
M: 832.283.6564 | </span><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Goudy Old Style",serif;color:#1F497D"><a
href="mailto:richard@schafer-ip.com"
moz-do-not-send="true"><span style="color:#0563C1">richard@schafer-ip.com</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Goudy Old Style",serif;color:#1F497D"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<div>
<div
style="border:none;border-top:solid #E1E1E1 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in">
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>From:</b> Patentpractice
<a class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="mailto:patentpractice-bounces@oppedahl-lists.com"><patentpractice-bounces@oppedahl-lists.com></a>
<b>On Behalf Of </b>James Katz via Patentpractice<br>
<b>Sent:</b> Tuesday, February 6, 2024 5:21 AM<br>
<b>To:</b> For patent practitioners. This is not for
laypersons to seek legal advice.
<a class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="mailto:patentpractice@oppedahl-lists.com"><patentpractice@oppedahl-lists.com></a><br>
<b>Cc:</b> James Katz <a class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="mailto:jkatz@lsk-iplaw.com"><jkatz@lsk-iplaw.com></a><br>
<b>Subject:</b> Re: [Patentpractice] Assignment Center -
can you save progress part way through? No<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span
style="font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif">So we have
now found that Assignment Center appears to “silently”
automatically save in-process submissions. We have tested
abandoning a submission at various screens, including at the
final submission screen and have found that our progress was
saved and we could return later to complete the submission.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span
style="font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span
style="font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif">So in order
to implement a second pair of eyes on submissions, our
assistants will stop once they reach the submit screen,
return to the home screen, go back in to the saved
submission and print the completed cover sheet to PDF, they
will then email that PDF to the attorney along with a copy
of the assignment document that was uploaded. The attorney
will review and respond with approval after which the
assistant will go back in and submit. At least one downside
to this approach is that the attorney will be unable to
review the actual uploaded assignment document. So if the
wrong document was uploaded, but the right document was
attached to the email for review, the attorney will not
know.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span
style="font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span
style="font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif">Another
solution we considered but discarded was to create a
dedicated MyUSPTO account for assignment submissions to
which everyone has access. This would allow one to go in and
review a saved submission. However, not only would this be
cumbersome to have to log out of one’s personal MyUSPTO
account and into another (and maintain two 2FA entries,
etc.), it was also unclear if multiple users could be logged
in to the same account at once. I also did not check if this
would violate some PTO TOS somewhere.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span
style="font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span
style="font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif">Another
thing we have found is that when entering multiple email
addresses to receive submission confirmations, etc., each
recipient will receive an email addressed only to them. So
from that email you cannot tell who the other recipients
are. Furthermore, the email itself, e.g., the subject line
and body, do not identify the application number or
client/matter. Only the id number assigned to the
submission by Assignment Center is identified. You have to
open up the attached cover sheet document to see the
application number.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span
style="font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span
style="font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif">Jim<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span
style="font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color:black">James L. Katz</span></b><span
style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black">patent attorney<br>
312.854.8372 ▪ direct<br>
312.291.0864 ▪ fax<br>
<a href="mailto:jkatz@lsk-iplaw.com" moz-do-not-send="true"><span
style="color:#0563C1">jkatz@lsk-iplaw.com</span></a><br>
<br>
<b>LEMPIA SUMMERFIELD KATZ LLC</b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black">20 south clark
street, suite 600 ▪ chicago, illinois 60603 ▪ <a
href="http://www.lsk-iplaw.com/" moz-do-not-send="true"><span
style="color:#0563C1">www.lsk-iplaw.com</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color:black">Please note:</span></b><span
style="color:black"> This message is intended for the
individual or entity named above and may constitute a
privileged and confidential communication. If you are not
the intended recipient, please do not read, copy, use, or
disclose this message. Please notify the sender by replying
to this message, and then delete the message from your
system. Thank you.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span
style="font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span
style="font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<div id="mail-editor-reference-message-container">
<div>
<div
style="border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in">
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt"><b><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;color:black">From:
</span></b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;color:black">Patentpractice
<<a
href="mailto:patentpractice-bounces@oppedahl-lists.com"
moz-do-not-send="true" class="moz-txt-link-freetext">patentpractice-bounces@oppedahl-lists.com</a>>
on behalf of Carl Oppedahl via Patentpractice <<a
href="mailto:patentpractice@oppedahl-lists.com"
moz-do-not-send="true" class="moz-txt-link-freetext">patentpractice@oppedahl-lists.com</a>><br>
<b>Date: </b>Monday, February 5, 2024 at 10:57 PM<br>
<b>To: </b>For patent practitioners. This is not for
laypersons to seek legal advice. <<a
href="mailto:patentpractice@oppedahl-lists.com"
moz-do-not-send="true" class="moz-txt-link-freetext">patentpractice@oppedahl-lists.com</a>><br>
<b>Cc: </b>Carl Oppedahl <<a
href="mailto:carl@oppedahl.com"
moz-do-not-send="true" class="moz-txt-link-freetext">carl@oppedahl.com</a>><br>
<b>Subject: </b>[Patentpractice] Assignment Center -
can you save progress part way through? No<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<p>Nope, it turns out to be impossible to save the
submission package part way through. See
<a
href="https://blog.oppedahl.com/some-of-the-defects-in-the-new-assignment-center/"
moz-do-not-send="true" class="moz-txt-link-freetext">
https://blog.oppedahl.com/some-of-the-defects-in-the-new-assignment-center/</a>
.<o:p></o:p></p>
<div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt">On
1/29/2024 4:15 PM, Carl Oppedahl via Patentpractice
wrote:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<blockquote style="margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt">
<p>Yes, it looks like that.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p>It looks like <b><i>if the exact same person</i></b>
wants to save progress and come back, they maybe can do
that. There is one extremely blurry slide toward the
beginning of the slide deck that gives the impression
that you can do that. But it looks like it is
impossible to pass a partially completed filing project
over to a colleague for a "second pair of eyes". Or to
pass it to a colleague for e-signature.<o:p></o:p></p>
<div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt">On
1/29/2024 4:05 PM, James Katz via Patentpractice
wrote:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<blockquote style="margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt">
<div>
<p class="MsoNormal">It also seems that they removed
any ability to “save progress” or otherwise save a
submission for review before it is submitted.
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">So there goes our workflow where
our assistants upload an assignment and save it
before submission, then forward the EPAS link to the
attorney for review before the assistant then
submits.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Jim<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color:black">James
L. Katz</span></b><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black">patent
attorney<br>
312.854.8372 ▪ direct<br>
312.291.0864 ▪ fax<br>
<a href="mailto:jkatz@lsk-iplaw.com"
moz-do-not-send="true"><span
style="color:#0563C1">jkatz@lsk-iplaw.com</span></a><br>
<br>
<b>LEMPIA SUMMERFIELD KATZ LLC</b></span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black">20
south clark
street, suite 600 ▪ chicago, illinois 60603 ▪ <a
href="http://www.lsk-iplaw.com/"
moz-do-not-send="true"><span
style="color:#0563C1">www.lsk-iplaw.com</span></a></span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color:black">Please
note:</span></b><span style="color:black"> This
message is intended for the individual or entity
named above and may constitute a privileged and
confidential communication. If you are not the
intended recipient, please do not read, copy, use,
or disclose this message. Please notify the
sender by replying to this message, and then
delete the message from your system. Thank you.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<div id="mail-editor-reference-message-container">
<div>
<div
style="border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in">
<p class="MsoNormal"
style="margin-bottom:12.0pt"><b><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif;color:black">From:
</span></b><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif;color:black">Patentpractice
<a
href="mailto:patentpractice-bounces@oppedahl-lists.com"
moz-do-not-send="true"><patentpractice-bounces@oppedahl-lists.com></a>
on behalf of Carl Oppedahl via
Patentpractice
<a
href="mailto:patentpractice@oppedahl-lists.com" moz-do-not-send="true"><patentpractice@oppedahl-lists.com></a><br>
<b>Date: </b>Monday, January 29, 2024 at
4:57 PM<br>
<b>To: </b><a
href="mailto:patentpractice@oppedahl-lists.com" moz-do-not-send="true"
class="moz-txt-link-freetext">patentpractice@oppedahl-lists.com</a>
<a
href="mailto:patentpractice@oppedahl-lists.com" moz-do-not-send="true"><patentpractice@oppedahl-lists.com></a><br>
<b>Cc: </b>Carl Oppedahl <a
href="mailto:carl@oppedahl.com"
moz-do-not-send="true"><carl@oppedahl.com></a><br>
<b>Subject: </b>[Patentpractice] some
initial reactions to the USPTO's training
slides for son-of-EPAS</span><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<p><b><i>Cumbersome login now required. </i></b>It
used to be that anybody could submit an
assignment for recordation. Now you have to do
a cumbersome login with two-factor
authentication. I suspect this means the person
doing the recordation session will have
previously been forced to do a Real ID or other
invasive prove-who-you-are procedure.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p><b><i>Stupid terminology.</i></b> The designer
of son-of-EPAS calls the recordation session
"filing an application". This is nuts.
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p><b><i>No functional enhancements for the paying
customer.</i></b> After all this big talk
about how wonderful this son-of-EPAS system is
going to be, I clicked around a bit to try to
see what functional enhancements it is going to
provide. For example I figured the least they
would do is make it so that you can check the
status of a recordation submission. Nope. No
enhancements of any kind so far as I can see.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p><b><i>Blocks you from including an application
number that they can't find in their
system.
</i></b>It looks like if your patent
application is not in Patentcenter, you will be
blocked from including it in your recordation
submission. I suspect this means it will be
impossible to record against a PCT application
filed in an Office that is not the RO/US.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p> <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
</blockquote>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
</blockquote>
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