Actions prepared by examiners are submitted electronically and sent to their respective legal instrument examiners for entry of the type of Office action into the USPTO’s automated data management system and for mailing.

Each examiner’s action that is counted and reported to the USPTO’s integrated examination tools will be listed by application number on their individual time and activity report. The time and activity report should be checked by the examiner to verify that all applications worked on for the biweekly report period are properly listed.

I. COUNTING OF FIRST ACTION ON THE MERITS (FAOM)

Office actions on the merits consist of rejections (final and non-final), Ex parte Quayle actions, and allowances.

The first time an examiner performs one of the above merit actions, credit is received for a First Action on the Merits (FAOM) on the production reports.

A second/subsequent FAOM usually occurs when the first action is a mailed restriction/election action and the second action is an action on the merits. The USPTO’s automated data management system will automatically determine if it is a FAOM. If the second action is a FAOM the examiner will be credited for FAOM on the production report.

II. COUNTING OF DISPOSALS

An examiner receives a "disposal" credit for the following actions:

1. (A) Allowance;
2. (B) Abandonment;
3. (C) Requests for Continued Examination;
4. (D) Examiner’s Answer;
5. (E) International Preliminary Examination Report; and
6. (F) Institution of an interference or derivation proceeding wherein the application would be in condition for allowance but for the interference or derivation proceeding.

These same items constitute the "disposals" for performance evaluation of examining art units and TCs. However, disposals at the Office level consist only of allowances and abandonments.

For either an allowance or an abandonment after an Examiner’s Answer or decision by a court or the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, no disposal credit is received, though these actions are indicated on the examiner’s individual time and activity report.

III. CORRECTION INFORMATION

1. (A) If any information is either missing from or incorrect on an examiner’s time and activity report, the examiner should promptly notify their supervisory patent examiner (SPE).
2. (B) The SPE will report the necessary changes and corrections directly into the integrated examination tools. These changes will be listed dynamically on the examiner’s individual time and activity report.
3. (C) If any information is missing from the last examiner’s individual time and activity report at the end of a quarter (except at the end of a fiscal year) or is incorrect, the examiner should promptly notify their SPE and/or their TC troubleshooter. The troubleshooter will make the appropriate changes directly into the integrated examination tools. The changes will be listed dynamically on the examiner’s individual time and activity report.
4. (D) In order to ensure that all reports are correct at the end of the fiscal year (rating period), or if any information is missing from or is incorrect on the last examiner’s individual time and activity report, the examiner should immediately notify their SPE of any needed corrections. These changes will be reflected in the examiner’s final biweekly time and activity report for the entire fiscal year.