§ 1. Establishment

5,211 words·~24 min read·/usc/title-35/section-1

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(a)Establishment.— The United States Patent and Trademark Office is established as an agency of the United States, within the Department of Commerce. In carrying out its functions, the United States Patent and Trademark Office shall be subject to the policy direction of the Secretary of Commerce, but otherwise shall retain responsibility for decisions regarding the management and administration of its operations and shall exercise independent control of its budget allocations and expenditures, personnel decisions and processes, procurements, and other administrative and management functions in accordance with this title and applicable provisions of law. Those operations designed to grant and issue patents and those operations which are designed to facilitate the registration of trademarks shall be treated as separate operating units within the Office.

(b)Offices.— The United States Patent and Trademark Office shall maintain its principal office in the metropolitan Washington, D.C., area, for the service of process and papers and for the purpose of carrying out its functions. The United States Patent and Trademark Office shall be deemed, for purposes of venue in civil actions, to be a resident of the district in which its principal office is located, except where jurisdiction is otherwise provided by law. The United States Patent and Trademark Office may establish satellite offices in such other places in the United States as it considers necessary and appropriate in the conduct of its business.

(c)Reference.— For purposes of this title, the United States Patent and Trademark Office shall also be referred to as the “Office” and the “Patent and Trademark Office”.

(July 19, 1952, ch. 950, 66 Stat. 792; Pub. L. 93–596, § 1, Jan. 2, 1975, 88 Stat. 1949; Pub. L. 106–113, div. B, § 1000(a)(9) [title IV, § 4711], Nov. 29, 1999, 113 Stat. 1536, 1501A–572.)

Historical and Revision Notes

Based on Title 35, U.S.C., 1946 ed., § 1 (R.S. 475 and Executive Order 4175, Mar. 17, 1925).

The word “all” is omitted from the corresponding section of the existing statute and “except as otherwise provided by law” added, since some old records are kept in the National Archives, see 44 U.S.C., 1946 ed., ch. 8A.

The word “models” has been omitted to remove emphasis on models since they are no longer generally required. They are included by the word “things.”

The phrase “and to trade-mark registrations” is added. There is no enactment corresponding to this section in the trade-mark law. The original chapter of the Revised Statutes containing this section deals with the Patent Office as such in its administration of trade-marks as well as patents. This is explicitly brought out in some of the corresponding sections of the present chapter. Changes in language are made.

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