How does joint inventorship affect prior art determination under 35 U.S.C. 102(e)?
Joint inventorship has significant implications for prior art determination under 35 U.S.C. 102(e). The MPEP 2136.04 provides guidance:
“If the application names a subset of joint inventors A and B of a patent naming inventors A, B and C, the patent is ‘by another’ and therefore qualifies as prior art under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102(e).”
This means that even if there’s overlap in inventors, a difference in the full inventive entity can still make a patent qualify as prior art. It’s crucial to consider the complete list of inventors when making this determination.
To learn more:
Topics:
MPEP 2100 - Patentability,
MPEP 2136.04 - Different Inventive Entity; Meaning Of "By Another",
Patent Law,
Patent Procedure