The present invention includes a method for docketing an action or event,
such as an action or event defined in a form received from the United
States Patent and Trademark Office. The method includes scanning the form
having written information thereon, the written information comprising a
date and indicia defining a docket event, to obtain a scanned image. The
indicia on the form defining a docketing event includes a title such as,
"Office Action," "Notice of Allowance," "Notice of Missing Parts" and so
forth. The date on the form includes, in many embodiments, "Date Mailed."
The method also includes processing the scanned image with character
recognition logic and identifying the indicia defining the docket event
or action and the date on the image.