How to docket rescind non-publication request tasks

[ChristianS9906]

We've been using this for several years, and I figured I'd share. If you file a non-pub request in a US matter, there isn't a very easy way of auto-docketing a Task to rescind that non-pub request in response to later filing a foreign application. However, it's not impossible to do so....

DISCLAIMER: This seems to work, but I make no warranties and, of course, do not accept liability if it turns out to not work as intended—you should test it yourself to satisfy yourself that it works before relying on it.

You'll need to create the task types below.
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TaskType: Rescind Non-Pub Transient Trigger

Deadline Type: Transient Event

Response Date: Use the triggering task closed-on date with 0 months/0 days offset.

Make sure that “Enable automatic task generation based on above trigger events” and “When automatically generated, only create the task for each related pending US matter (if any)” are both checked.

Triggers
a) When any task completes
b) AND while the 'CountryCode' field in the matter doesn't contain 'US'
c) AND while the 'TaskType' field in the task contains 'Statutory Bar Date'

NOTE: (c) can be replaced with whatever task is appropriate for your docketing setup—the key is to choose a task that will always be present in a non-US or PCT filing and that will always be closed out as “Complete” when that non-US or PCT filing is actually filed and that will have a closed-on date that is the actual filing date of that non-US or PCT filing (this is important!). We used “statutory bar date” since we have both Paris and PCT statutory bar date tasks, and this approach allowed us to get both with one rule set. But you could also just use “when a specific task completes with a given state” to combine (a) and (c) if you just use one such task type for all foreign filings.
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TaskType: Rescind Non-Pub Request

Deadline Type: Hard External Deadline with +45 days (or maybe less, if you want to have some cushion) from triggering task reference date as response date.

Make sure that “Enable automatic task generation based on above trigger events” is checked.

Triggers
a) When a 'Rescind Non-Pub Transient Trigger' task is created
b) AND while the 'NonPublication' field in the matter contains 'True'
c) AND while the 'CountryCode' field in the matter contains 'US'
d) AND while the 'Type' field in the matter contains 'Utility'
e) AND while the 'Type' field in the matter doesn't contain 'Utility: Provisional'
f) AND while a task database query 'Matter = "{Task.Matter}" and TaskType = "Rescind Non-Pub Request"' doesn't return any records

Every time a foreign case gets filed, the transient trigger will be created (and then disappear) in all related US matters—the Rescind Non-Pub Request listens for that trigger event. If it hears it in a US matter, it then auto-dockets in that matter if the additional conditions are met.

(a) is the trigger event. (b) limits the Rescind Non-Pub Request task to only docket in matters that have Non-Pub set to True. (c) limits this auto-docketing to US matters only (this is probably unnecessary—the trigger task should only be created in US matters in the first place). (d) limits the Rescind Non-Pub Request task to only docket in Utility apps (not design apps) and (e) excludes docketing it in provisionals (also probably unnecessary since they don’t publish/non-publish). Lastly, (f) prevents duplicate Rescind Non-Pub Request tasks from being created, e.g., one for each foreign app filed off of a US matter—you just get the first one to be docketed.

NOTE: (f) is handy for reducing clutter, but using it runs the risk of having the date for the Rescind Non-Pub Request task be wrong. For example, if you file multiple foreign apps, and the first one that triggers the transient trigger happens to have a filing date (closed-on date) that is after the filing date (closed-on date) of a later-docketed foreign filing, the Rescind Non-Pub Request will have a due date based on the first-docketed but not first-filed foreign matter, and that will be off. If you prefer, leave (f) off to ensure that Rescind Non-Pub Requests are docketed for every foreign filing according to each such foreign filing’s actual filing date.

Cheers,
Christian