[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 37, Volume 1]
[Revised as of July 1, 1999]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 37CFR1.52]

[Page 34-35]
 
             TITLE 37--PATENTS, TRADEMARKS, AND COPYRIGHTS
 
    CHAPTER I--PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE, DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
 
PART 1--RULES OF PRACTICE IN PATENT CASES--Table of Contents
 
                Subpart B--National Processing Provisions
 
Sec. 1.52  Language, paper, writing, margins.

    (a) The application, any amendments or corrections thereto, and the 
oath or declaration must be in the English language except as provided 
for in Sec. 1.69 and paragraph (d) of this section, or be accompanied by 
a translation of the application and a translation of any corrections or 
amendments into the English language together with a

[[Page 35]]

statement that the translation is accurate. All papers which are to 
become a part of the permanent records of the Patent and Trademark 
Office must be legibly written either by a typewriter or mechanical 
printer in permanent dark ink or its equivalent in portrait orientation 
on flexible, strong, smooth, non-shiny, durable, and white paper. All of 
the application papers must be presented in a form having sufficient 
clarity and contrast between the paper and the writing thereon to permit 
the direct reproduction of readily legible copies in any number by use 
of photographic, electrostatic, photo-offset, and microfilming processes 
and electronic reproduction by use of digital imaging and optical 
character recognition. If the papers are not of the required quality, 
substitute typewritten or mechanically printed papers of suitable 
quality will be required. See Sec. 1.125 for filing substitute 
typewritten or mechanically printed papers constituting a substitute 
specification when required by the Office.
    (b) Except for drawings, the application papers (specification, 
including claims, abstract, oath or declaration, and papers as provided 
for in this part) and also papers subsequently filed, must have each 
page plainly written on only one side of a sheet of paper, with the 
claim or claims commencing on a separate sheet and the abstract 
commencing on a separate sheet. See Secs. 1.72(b) and 1.75(h). The 
sheets of paper must be the same size and either 21.0 cm. by 29.7 cm. 
(DIN size A4) or 21.6 cm. by 27.9 cm. (8\1/2\ by 11 inches). Each sheet 
must include a top margin of at least 2.0 cm. (\3/4\ inch), a left side 
margin of at least 2.5 cm. (1 inch), a right side margin of at least 2.0 
cm. (\3/4\ inch), and a bottom margin of at least 2.0 cm. (\3/4\ inch), 
and no holes should be made in the sheets as submitted. The lines of the 
specification, and any amendments to the specification, must be 1\1/2\ 
or double spaced. The pages of the specification including claims and 
abstract must be numbered consecutively, starting with 1, the numbers 
being centrally located above or preferably, below, the text. See 
Sec. 1.84 for drawings.
    (c) Any interlineation, erasure, cancellation or other alteration of 
the application papers filed should be made on or before the signing of 
any accompanying oath or declaration pursuant to Sec. 1.63 referring to 
those application papers and should be dated and initialed or signed by 
the applicant on the same sheet of paper. Application papers containing 
alterations made after the signing of an oath or declaration referring 
to those application papers must be supported by a supplemental oath or 
declaration under Sec. 1.67(c). After the signing of the oath or 
declaration referring to the application papers, amendments may only be 
made in the manner provided by Sec. 1.121.
    (d) An application may be filed in a language other than English. An 
English translation of the non-English-language application, a statement 
that the translation is accurate, and the fee set forth in Sec. 1.17(k) 
are required to be filed with the application or within such time as may 
be set by the Office.

(Pub. L. 94-131, 89 Stat. 685; 35 U.S.C. 6, Pub. L. 97-247; 15 U.S.C. 
1113, 1123)

[43 FR 20462, May. 11, 1978, as amended at 47 FR 41275, Sept. 17, 1982; 
48 FR 2709, Jan. 20, 1983; 49 FR 554, Jan. 4, 1984; 57 FR 2033, Jan. 17, 
1992; 61 FR 42803, Aug. 19, 1996; 62 FR 53186, Oct. 10, 1997]