Appeal No. 2000-1751
Application 08/530,264
4. Other Documents
We draw the examiner's attention to US Patent No. 5,811,395 (Schwabe) and US
Patent No. 6,075,005 (Lurie). Each patent claims the use of relaxin and/or a relaxin analog
to treat hair loss or androgenetic alopecia. While neither patent appears to be prior art to
the claims on appeal, they provide evidence that at some point in time, the USPTO
determined that use of relaxin and/or relaxin analogs to treat hair loss or androgenetic
alopecia is not an incredible utility. In considering these documents, the examiner should
also take into account that Lurie appears to be issued to the present applicant. As such,
double patenting issues may arise.
5. Appeal Conference
We note that the record does not reflect that this application was subject to an
appeal conference prior to forwarding the case to the board. We understand that it is now
the policy of the USPTO to conduct an appeal conference prior to forwarding a case to the
board. Upon return of the application, if the examiner believes that the claims on appeal
are unpatentable, we believe it would be helpful if an appeal conference is convened.
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