37 CFR 1.155 : Patents, Trademarks, And Copyrights (§ 1.1 To Chapter V) — (§ 1.1 To Chapter V) — United States Patent And Trademark Office, Department Of Commerce (§ 1.1 To Parts 151-199) — General (§ 1.1 To §§ 5.31-5.33) — Rules Of Practice In Patent Cases (§ 1.1 To § 1.1071) — National Processing Provisions (§ 1.31 To § 1.378) — Design Patents (§ 1.151 To § 1.155) — Expedited examination of design applications.

(a) The applicant may request that the Office expedite the examination of a design application. To qualify for expedited examination:

(1) The application must include drawings in compliance with § 1.84, or for an international design application that designates the United States, must have been published pursuant to Hague Agreement Article 10(3);

(2) The applicant must have conducted a preexamination search; and

(3) The applicant must file a request for expedited examination including:

(i) The fee set forth in § 1.17(k); and

(ii) A statement that a preexamination search was conducted. The statement must also indicate the field of search and include an information disclosure statement in compliance with § 1.98.

(b) The Office will not examine an application that is not in condition for examination (e.g., missing basic filing fee) even if the applicant files a request for expedited examination under this section.