Now we know. On December 22 the PTO experienced what it called a ‘catastrophic failure’ of the electronic patent and trademark filing and data systems due to a power outage. The PTO technology staff worked through the Christmas holiday, and this writer can testify that the system was back up and receiving patent filings by Sunday, December 27. The PTO director extended response deadlines for persons affected by the failure until December 28.
Can you say ‘off-site backup?’