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Question:
Where may information material to patentability come from?
Answer:
Sources of information may include:
- co-workers
- trade shows
- communications from or with competitors
- potential infringers
- third parties
Chapter Details:
The answer to this question can be found in chapter 2000 of the MPEP. This chapter covers Duty of Disclosure.
The answer is from the 9th Edition, Revision 07.2015. Depending on future changes to the MPEP, the question and answer may or may not be applicable in later Editions or revisions.
Section Summary:
This question and answer comes from section 2001 of the MPEP. The following is a brief summary of section 2001.
2001 Duty of Disclosure, Candor and Good Faith
This section covers the duty of disclosure, candor and good faith. Essentially, any information material to the patentability of the invention must be disclosed to the Office with candor and good faith. Materiality refers to all references or other information pertaining to the patentability of the subject matter in an application.
This section specifies the information included under the duty to disclose. The duty to disclose exists until the application becomes abandoned.