The US Patent and Trademark Office announced yesterday that on May 4, 2011 it will implement Track One, prioritized examination, of the new three-track examination system.  There will be an added fee of $4000 for requesting Track One examination on top of the regular filing fees.  (As yet, there is no reduction for small entities.)  The USPTO intends for prioritized examination to result in a first Office action on patentability in four months and final disposition in 12 months once the request is granted.  The three-track examination system also includes Track Two, regular examination, and Track Three, a request for up to 30 months’ delay  before an application is added to the docket for examination.  The USPTO plans to implement Track Three by the end of September 2011.