USPTO does have a plan, namely, Plan for Orderly Shutdown Due to Lapse of Congressional Appropriations,(hereinafter, “The Plan”). The USPTO has sufficient funds from other than FY14 appropriations to continue full operations for approximately 4 weeks. Therefore, all 11,789 employees of the USPTO will be excepted for approximately up to 4 weeks following a lapse in appropriations. After this time period, the USPTO will execute the Plan as described in the “Plan” and excepted employees will be listed under the category of “Employees, not otherwise exempt, to be retained to protect life and property”.

Register now for the 18th Annual Independent Inventors Conference

18th Annual Independent Inventors Conference. October 11-12, 2013. USPTO, Alexandria, Va.
The United States Patent and Trademark Office’s (USPTO) 18th Annual Independent Inventors Conference will be held October 11-12, 2013. After taking place in various regions around the country, the annual conference comes home to the USPTO headquarters in Alexandria, Va.

For two days, independent inventors and small business owners will have an unparalleled opportunity to learn, network, and jumpstart their creative endeavors. Experts and senior officials from the USPTO, including Deputy Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Deputy Director of the USPTO Teresa Stanek Rea and Commissioner for Patents Margaret (Peggy) Focarino, will present valuable information on patents, trademarks, and other intellectual property (IP) matters. Successful business owners and inventors will relate their inspiring personal experiences in bringing their dreams to market. In addition, representatives from government, legal, and business development entities will discuss commercial best practices and the various resources offered by their organizations. Each attendee will have an exclusive opportunity to meet one-on-one with a USPTO expert or IP professional and discuss innovation matters important to them. A pre-conference workshop is available the evening of October 10 to help conference-goers prepare for getting the most out of their experience.

Keynoting the event is prolific inventor Woody Norris, who is responsible for a wide range of technologies, including the hypersonic sound focusing device.

Attendees will also be able to choose from a variety of panels and breakout sessions that address specific intellectual property topics relevant to the modern inventor and small business owner. These sessions include hands-on workshops on patent and trademark application filing, prior art searching, and recent changes in legislation that affect business owners and inventors, among many other topics.

The 18th Annual Independent Inventors Conference promises to be a great opportunity. We look forward to seeing you in October!

For more information, contact the USPTO’s Office of Innovation Development at 571-272-8877 or 866-767-3848 or email independentinventor@uspto.gov.