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Patent Examiner Michael Forrest

Art Unit 1738 · Powder Metallurgy, Steel, Metal Recovery & Inorganic Compounds · Tech Center 1700 · 219 applications filed 2021–2026

Average · easier than 51% of examiners● Free examiner data

Michael Forrest is a USPTO patent examiner in Art Unit 1738 (Powder Metallurgy, Steel, Metal Recovery & Inorganic Compounds) with 219 applications from filing years 2021–2026. Examiner Forrest's allowance rate is 84.7%, above the 83.2% USPTO average for applications filed in the same years. The examiner ranks easier than 51% of examiners. In 2021, decided applications with an examiner interview were allowed 28.2 percentage points more often than those without.

Draft a response to Examiner ForrestSee the strategy data ↓

Data through October 2026 from USPTO Patent Center (formerly PAIR) · Methodology

Overview

Free
Difficulty · Average
easier than 51% of examiners
Easier48th percentileHarder
Allowance rate vs peers
Examiner Forrest84.7%
Art Unit 173879.3%
USPTO average83.2%
Allowance rate
84.7%
▲ USPTO avg 83.2%
Applications
219
filing years 2021–2026
First-action allowance
8.8%
patented with no rejection
Abandoned
9.6%
share of applications
Avg office actions
1.3
USPTO avg 1.3
Days to first OA
775
▲ USPTO 615
RCE rate
15.1%
USPTO 18.8%
Interview rate
14.6%
USPTO 26.6%

Examiner details

  • Art unit1738 · Powder Metallurgy, Steel, Metal Recovery & Inorganic Compounds
  • Title / gradePrimary Patent Examiner · GS-14
  • Service19 years
  • PhoneOn each office action
  • Email[email protected]
  • In USPTO recordsFORREST, MICHAEL
Full signatory authority

Examiner Forrest can allow an application without a supervisory sign-off.

Examines (USPC classes)
423 · Chemistry of Inorganic Compounds106 · Coating or Plastic Compositions502 · Catalyst, Solid Sorbent, or Support Therefor

How to improve your odds with Examiner Forrest

  • The data favors an interview. Interviewed cases were allowed more often in all 3 measured years, by 9.1 to 28.2 points.
  • Plan for the timeline. First office action averages 775 days vs the 615-day USPTO norm.
  • Expect a §103. Obviousness is the most-issued rejection (133), and applicants overcame it 64.8% of the time.
  • The data favors an RCE here. Cases with an RCE were allowed more often in both measured years, by 9.2 to 28.2 points.

Historical patterns from this examiner's past cases, shown for general information. This is not legal advice and does not predict the outcome of any specific application. Decisions about interviews, RCEs, and claim strategy should be made with a licensed patent attorney or agent.

Rejection patterns & how they get overcome

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§102 Novelty26 issued · 66.7% overcome
§103 Obviousness133 issued · 64.8% overcome
§112 Definiteness & disclosure63 issued · 78.9% overcome
How applicants traverse §103 rejections🔒 Members

Applicants overcame 59 of the 91 decided §103 obviousness rejections from Examiner Forrest in the data. Each winning response, with its arguments and claim amendments, is in the file wrapper.

Read the winning §103 argumentsFull REMARKS, amendments, claim trees & redlines from the file wrappers
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Draft your response with Examiner Forrest's record and Art Unit 1738's history in view, including the rejection patterns, the interview record, and the arguments that have overcome them. See the office action response tools in AI Studio.

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RCE behavior

Allowance after a Request for Continued Examination versus without one, per year. Use it to judge whether an RCE is worth the cost in front of Examiner Forrest.

YearRCE rateAllowance w/ RCEAllowance w/oDelta
202226.1%90.0%80.8%+9.2pp
202129.1%100.0%71.8%+28.2pp

Recent outcomes

Free🔒 Case detail for members
App #TitleOutcomeOAsArguments & redline
17/914797Hydroformylation Catalyst System with Syngas SurrogatePatented1🔒 View
17/757488Dental Impression Material and Combination Impression MaterialPatented3🔒 View
18/267460Method of Producing Recycled Reinforcing FibersPatented1🔒 View
18/170044Enhanced Gasification System and MethodPatented1🔒 View
See all 219 applications with full file-wrapper detailOffice action text, attorney arguments, amendments & claim-by-claim track changes
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Art Unit 1738 technology

Powder metallurgyMetal recovery & leachingIron & steel processingCatalysts & sorbentsTop CPC C22C · B22F · C21D
About this examiner. Michael Forrest examines in Art Unit 1738 (Powder Metallurgy, Steel, Metal Recovery & Inorganic Compounds, Tech Center 1700). The art unit's docket includes powder metallurgy, metal recovery & leaching, iron & steel processing, and catalysts & sorbents.

Frequently asked questions

What is Examiner Michael Forrest's allowance rate?
Examiner Forrest's allowance rate is 84.7%, compared with 83.2% across the USPTO and 79.3% in Art Unit 1738 for applications filed in the same years. That rate ranks Examiner Forrest easier than 51% of examiners.
Is Examiner Forrest a hard examiner?
Not especially. Examiner Forrest ranks easier than 51% of examiners, in the 48th difficulty percentile (average). Examiner Forrest has an 84.7% allowance rate versus 83.2% across the USPTO and 79.3% in Art Unit 1738, 1.3 office actions per application versus 1.3, and an RCE rate of 15.1% versus 18.8% across the USPTO, for applications filed in the same years.
Do examiner interviews help with Examiner Forrest?
In this examiner's record, yes. Decided applications with an interview were allowed more often in each of the 3 measured years, by 9.1 to 28.2 percentage points. In 2021, 100.0% of decided applications with an interview were allowed, versus 71.8% of those without.
What is Examiner Forrest's most common rejection?
§103 obviousness, issued 133 times in the data. Applicants overcame it 64.8% of the time.
Is an RCE worth filing with Examiner Forrest?
In this examiner's record, yes. Decided applications with an RCE were allowed more often in both measured years, by 9.2 to 28.2 percentage points. In 2021, 100.0% of decided applications with an RCE were allowed, versus 71.8% of those without one.
How long until the first office action from Examiner Forrest?
About 775 days on average, versus 615 days across the USPTO for applications filed in the same years.
How do I contact Examiner Michael Forrest?
Examiner Forrest can be reached by email at [email protected]. The examiner's direct line is listed at the end of the examiner's office actions.

Put Examiner Forrest's data to work on your next response.

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Statistics are computed by Boundly Prosecution Intel from USPTO Patent Center (formerly PAIR) file wrappers for filing years 2021–2026, refreshed regularly. Allowance rate (sometimes called grant rate) is the share of disposed applications that issued as patents. Office actions here are non-final and final rejections, so restriction requirements and allowances are not counted. USPTO benchmarks are weighted to each examiner's mix of filing years, and art-unit benchmarks to the art units and filing years of the examiner's own applications, so they compare like for like. The difficulty percentile ranks examiners, each counted once, so it can point the other way from the USPTO average, which counts applications. See how each number is computed. The year-by-year interview and RCE tables show up to four recent filing years, leaving out the newest one and any year with fewer than ten applications or five decided applications on either side. Historical data is provided for informational purposes only. Past examiner behavior does not guarantee future outcomes, and nothing here is legal advice or a substitute for advice from a licensed patent attorney or agent. Are you Michael Forrest, or see an error? Request a correction.