OPLA Final Sources Sought Notice.pdf

Sources Sought Notice (SSN):

Office of Patent Legal Administration (OPLA)

ACQ-25-0305

Supported by the Office of the Chief Financial Officer, Office of Procurement

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Contents

INTRODUCTION & CONTEXT

SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

DISCLAIMER AND NOTICE REGARDING CONTRACT AWARDS

INTRODUCTION & CONTEXT

This is a Sources Sought Notice (SSN) announcement only. This notice does not constitute a commitment by the Government. All information submitted in response to this announcement is voluntary, and the Government will not pay for information requested nor will it compensate any respondent for any cost incurred in developing information provided to the Government.

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is conducting market research to determine if there exists an adequate number of qualified interested contractors capable of providing solutions to meet the Office of Patent Legal Administration (OPLA) requirement. The Government may use the response to this SSN for informational and planning purposes.

Historically, this requirement was solicited as an 8(a) set aside.

NAICS Code: 541199

PSC: R498

Description: The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia, and has over 13,000 employees who are dedicated to accomplishing the USPTO’s mission, vision, strategic goals, and guiding principles. Within the USPTO, the Office of Patent Examination Policy establishes patent examination and documentation policy standards for the Commissioner of Patents. The Office also develops new rules, practices, and procedures;

reviews and revises the Manual of Patent Examining Procedures; and trains examiners on legal issues. The Office of Patent Examination Policy is made up of three (3) divisions: Office of Petitions, Office of Patent Legal Administration, and Manual of Patent Examining Procedure (MPEP) Staff.

The Office of Patent Legal Administration (OPLA) drafts regulations and develops practices for the examination of patent applications, as well as assisting in the implementation of these new regulations and practices. OPLA's staff drafts, reviews, and revises regulatory notices that are published in the Federal Register, Official Gazette, or both, monitors public comments, and formulates Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs). To reflect changes in law, rules, procedures, and policies, OPLA recommends updates to the Manual of Patent Examining Procedure (MPEP) as well as the forms used by the Patent Examining Corps (Corps) and external customers. OPLA, also, prepares and delivers training to the Patent Corps.

OPLA involves working with complex and specialized areas of patent law. As a result, OPLA requires patent legal subject matter experts to advise and assist on matters related to the drafting of regulations and developing policies for examination of patent applications through the implementation of new regulations and practices.

The objective of this requirement is to procure professional, experienced patent legal advisory support to the Office of Patent Legal Administration (OPLA). The anticipated contract type will be labor hours.

SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

The Government requests that interested parties respond to this notice in writing including details of your company’s ability to perform the Office of Patent Legal Administration (OPLA) support services. Additionally, please provide the following information:

1) Company Name and Address

2) Unique Entity ID (UEI)

3) Company Business Size by NAICS code

4) Small Business Type(s), if applicable

5) Points of Contact for questions and/or clarifications

6) Telephone number and email address

7) Webpage URL (if applicable)

8) Teaming Partners (if applicable)

9) Provide any recommendations and/or concerns

Do not submit pricing information in response to this Sources Sought.

Responses to this Sources Sought shall not exceed five (5) pages in length.

Please send responses with the subject heading: “OPLA – SSN Response” to Mike Spatuzzi, Contract Specialist, at Michael.Spatuzzi@uspto.gov and Kelly Gustafson, Contracting Officer, at Kelly.Gustafson@uspto.gov by 1:30 PM EST December 12, 2024. The information in this notice is current as of the publication date, but is subject to change and is not binding to the Government.

Oral submissions of information are not acceptable.

mailto:Michael.Spatuzzi@uspto.gov mailto:Kelly.Gustafson@uspto.gov

DISCLAIMER AND NOTICE REGARDING CONTRACT AWARDS

This Special Notice is issued for market research, information and planning purposes. This document is not a Request for Proposal (RFP) or Request for Quotation (RFQ), or a promise to issue an RFP or RFQ in the future. There is no USPTO commitment or implied agreement or understanding as a result of Government action or inaction taken in response to the RFI or the accompanying documents or attachments. This Sources Sought does not commit the Government to contract for any supply or service whatsoever. The information provided in the Sources Sought is subject to change and is not binding on the Government.

Participation in this process is strictly voluntary. No entitlement to payment will arise as a result of the submission of a response to the Sources Sought or the response to any questions that the USPTO may ask as a result of the submission. The UPSTO will not incur or reimburse any costs for the submission of responses or activities associated with the preparation or response to this Sources Sought, including responses to any follow-up information or action requested by the Government. Responders are advised that the USPTO is not liable for and will not pay for any information or direct, indirect, or administrative costs incurred in responding to this Sources Sought. The USPTO has not made a commitment to procure any of the items discussed, and release of this Sources Sought should not be construed as such a commitment or as authorization to incur cost for which reimbursement would be required or sought. All submissions become Government property and will not be returned but will be handled in accordance with applicable proprietary markings.

The USPTO may use the results obtained from this Sources Sought to support one or more future procurements. Moreover, if a procurement is warranted, then the response to this Sources Sought will be used for the purpose of determining whether a competitive or sole source procurement is appropriate. Additionally, the USPTO may use the results obtained from this Sources Sought to make a small business set-aside determination. This means that if you are a small business and you are able to provide the content described below, your response may be critical in determining whether to set aside any future requirement in part or in total for small businesses.

Any small business provider of the content described in this document is strongly encouraged to respond to this Sources Sought.

Finally, note also that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is not at this time seeking proposals and will not accept unsolicited proposals for the work described in the attached Sources Sought or any attached documents.