DENVER - The first three administrative patent judges assigned to the new United States Patent and Trademark office in Colorado began their first day on the job Monday.

 The judges will work out of the temporary space in Lakewood until renovations at the Byron G. Rogers Federal Building at 1961 Stout St. in Denver are completed.

The temporary U.S. patent office in Lakewood is in the Denver Federal Center, West 6th Avenue and Kipling Street. The temporary office does not have a general phone number yet. For immediate inquiries, people with questions for the patent office may call the national office at 1-800-786-9199.

"This is a milestone moment for everyone in the state who fought to bring a satellite patent office to Colorado," said U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo. "It's the beginning of more jobs and increased economic development for the state. These judges will provide easier access for applicants and inventors in our region while helping Colorado's innovative and entrepreneurial companies maintain our state's reputation as a hotbed for cutting-edge industries."

"Our new patent trial and appeal board judges are eager to get to work," said Teresa Stanek Rea, acting under secretary of commerce for intellectual property and acting USPTO director. "They will be instrumental in administering the new in-house review process for challenging granted patents, which will ultimately reduce the costs associated with patent litigation."

The new review process was established by the America Invents Act signed into law in 2011.

Bennet led a bipartisan effort with the Metro Denver Economic Development Corp. and Sheridan Ross PC that included leaders from government, the business community, academia and from communities across the state to make the case for a patent office in Colorado.