37 CFR § 1.949 - Examiner's Office action closing prosecution in reexamination.

---
identifier: "/us/cfr/t37/s1.949"
source: "ecfr"
legal_status: "authoritative_unofficial"
title: "37 CFR § 1.949 - Examiner's Office action closing prosecution in  reexamination."
title_number: 37
title_name: "Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights"
section_number: "1.949"
section_name: "Examiner's Office action closing prosecution in  reexamination."
chapter_name: "UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE, DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE"
subchapter_number: "A"
subchapter_name: "GENERAL"
part_number: "1"
part_name: "RULES OF PRACTICE IN PATENT CASES"
positive_law: false
currency: "2026-04-05"
last_updated: "2026-04-05"
format_version: "1.1.0"
generator: "[email protected]"
authority: "35 U.S.C. 2(b)(2), unless otherwise noted."
regulatory_source: "24 FR 10332, Dec. 22, 1959, unless otherwise noted."
cfr_part: "1"
---


# 1.949 Examiner's Office action closing prosecution in  reexamination.

Upon consideration of the issues a second or subsequent time, or upon a determination of patentability of all claims, the examiner shall issue an Office action treating all claims present in the *inter partes* reexamination, which may be an action closing prosecution. The Office action shall set forth all rejections and determinations not to make a proposed rejection, and the grounds therefor. An Office action will not usually close prosecution if it includes a new ground of rejection which was not previously addressed by the patent owner, unless the new ground was necessitated by an amendment.