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§ 1.616 Sanctions for failure to comply with rules or order or for taking and maintaining a frivolous position. - PATENT RULES
§ 1.616 Sanctions for failure to comply with rules or order or for taking and maintaining a frivolous position.
(a) An administrative patent judge or the Board may impose an appropriate sanction against a party who fails to comply with the regulations of this part or any order entered by an administrative patent judge or the Board. An appropriate sanction may include among others entry of an order:
(1) Holding certain facts to have been established in the interference;
(2) Precluding a party from filing a paper;
(3) Precluding a party from presenting or contesting a particular issue;
(4) Precluding a party from requesting, obtaining, or opposing discovery;
(5) Awarding compensatory expenses and/or compensatory attorney fees; or
(6) Granting judgment in the interference.
(b) An administrative patent judge or the Board may impose a sanction, including a sanction in the form of compensatory expenses and/or compensatory attorney fees, against a party for taking and maintaining a frivolous position in papers filed in the interference.
(c) To the extent that an administrative patent judge or the Board has authorized a party to compel the taking of testimony or the production of documents or things from an individual or entity located in a NAFTA country or a WTO member country concerning knowledge, use, or other activity relevant to proving or disproving a date of invention (§ 1.671(h)), but the testimony, documents or things have not been produced for use in the interference to the same extent as such information could be made available in the United States, the administrative patent judge or the Board shall draw such adverse inferences as may be appropriate under the circumstances, or take such other action permitted by statute, rule, or regulation, in favor of the party that requested the information in the interference, including imposition of appropriate sanctions under paragraph (a) of this section.
(d) A party may file a motion (§ 1.635) for entry of an order imposing sanctions, the drawing of adverse inferences or other action under paragraph (a), (b) or (c) of this section. Where an administrative patent judge or the Board on its own initiative determines that a sanction, adverse inference or other action against a party may be appropriate under paragraph (a), (b) or (c) of this section, the administrative patent judge or the Board shall enter an order for the party to show cause why the sanction, adverse inference or other action is not appropriate. The Board shall take action in accordance with the order unless, within 20 days after the date of the order, the party files a paper which shows good cause why the sanction, adverse inference or other action would not be appropriate.
[49 FR 48416, Dec. 12, 1984, added effective Feb. 11, 1985; 50 FR 23124, May 31, 1985; revised, 60 FR 14488, Mar. 17, 1995, effective Apr. 21, 1995]
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