35 U.S.C. § 131: Examination of application

The Director shall cause an examination to be made of the application and the alleged new invention; and if on such examination it appears that the applicant is entitled to a patent under the law, the Director shall issue a patent therefor. Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act [ Dec. 29, 2022 ], the Director shall establish a pilot program to assist first-time prospective patent applicants in assessing the strengths and weaknesses of a potential patent application submitted by such a prospective applicant. a notification process to notify a prospective patent applicant seeking an assessment described in that subsection that any assessment so provided may not be considered an official ruling of patentability from the Office; conditions to determine eligibility for the pilot program, taking into consideration available resources; reasonable limitations on the amount of time to be spent providing assistance to each individual first-time prospective patent applicant; procedures for referring prospective patent applicants to legal counsel, including through the patent pro bono programs; and procedures to protect the confidentiality of the information disclosed by prospective patent applicants.”