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In the scenario you described previously, there were three applications you were considering: (1) US Provisional (filed, now expired), (2) PCT1 (filed, claims priority to US Prov; current status is withdrawn), and (3) PCT2 (filing status unknown but would be
filed within one year of PCT1, would claim foreign priority to PCT 1</div>
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<div id="divRplyFwdMsg" dir="ltr"><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><b>From:</b> Pct <pct-bounces@oppedahl-lists.com> on behalf of Andrew Berks via Pct <pct@oppedahl-lists.com><br>
<b>Sent:</b> Sunday, November 19, 2023 5:00 PM<br>
<b>To:</b> pct@oppedahl-lists.com <pct@oppedahl-lists.com><br>
<b>Cc:</b> Andrew Berks <andrew@berksiplaw.com><br>
<b>Subject:</b> [Pct] Paris Convention Art. 4(C)(4)</span>
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<div style="direction: ltr;">This provision of the Paris Convention (PC) was recently pointed out to me, because I had a situation where I filed a PCT application (PCT1) that was withdrawn involuntarily (the details are irrelevant to this discussion). A potential
way to recover from this situation would be to file a second PCT application (PCT2) on the anniversary of the PCT1 filing date.<br>
<br>
This should be a good plan under the PC<a href="https://www.wipo.int/wipolex/en/text/288514#P83_6610" shash="FQtgKt1tna2/3W6c6zj9vzcTnnBuI/OX3b4oBA0IXFTs1hUmQtqC519FHBX6vatS+BXtHXT9Zw4o8ASev5lmzMHvJ1SDqjnNZx0yd5WNhmwjqExA3kA0ny7qw9rvbHQpe3d+CiNCehVWoNDnDHLTCQCHA9DxB7veH0nhSLA+h3M=" originalsrc="https://www.wipo.int/wipolex/en/text/288514#P83_6610" data-auth="Verified" id="OWAc9155917-3aa5-fa33-5d27-1c8aeacb3faf" class="OWAAutoLink"> Art.
4(A)</a>: its a duly filed regular national patent application, and it should give me a right to priority "whatever may be the subsequent fate of the application" (which in my case, PCT1 was withdrawn).<br>
<br>
But Art. 4(C)(4) seems to directly contradict this: 4(C)(4) states that a subsequent application (here PCT2)
<i>shall </i>be considered as the first application, of which the filing date shall be the starting point of the period of priority, if, at the time of filing the subsequent application, the previous application (here PCT1) has been withdrawn, abandoned, or
refused, without having been laid open to public inspection and without leaving any rights outstanding. The previous application
<i>may not thereafter serve as a basis for claiming a right of priority</i>. (paraphrased slightly and emphasis added).<br>
<br>
The use of the word "shall" in 4(C)(4) seems to directly contradict 4(A). Bodenhausen states that the phrase in 4(A)(3) "whatever may be the subsequent fate of the application" means the right of priority subsists when the first application is withdrawn, abandoned
or rejected - which is what happened to PCT1.<br>
<br>
So a plain reading of 4(C)(4) seems to mean that PCT2 cannot in any circumstance (use of the word "shall") claim priority to PCT1 if PCT1 is withdrawn, abandoned or rejected. So what happened to the "subsequent fate" language?<br>
<br>
The only solution that makes sense here is that 4(C)(4) is optional. That means that a PCT2 can optionally disregard a PCT1 if the conditions of being withdrawn, etc. are met, because PCT1 is a dead patent application, but PCT2 can still claim priority to PCT1,
regardless of the subsequent fate of PCT1, if the applicant so chooses.</div>
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<p style="direction: ltr;"><span style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34);">Andrew H. Berks, Ph.D., J.D.</span></p>
<p style="direction: ltr;"><span style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34);">Partner, Fresh IP PLC</span></p>
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