What are the consequences of failing to comply with the written description requirement under 35 U.S.C. 112(a)?

What are the consequences of failing to comply with the written description requirement under 35 U.S.C. 112(a)?

Failing to comply with the written description requirement under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) can result in the rejection of a patent application. The MPEP states:

“A description that does not meet the written description requirement will result in a rejection of the application under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, first paragraph.”

This means that if the specification doesn’t adequately describe the claimed invention, the patent examiner will issue a rejection. To overcome such a rejection, the applicant must either:

• Amend the claims to better align with the description in the specification
• Provide evidence that the original disclosure does, in fact, support the claims
• Argue persuasively that the written description is sufficient

Failure to address this rejection can ultimately lead to the denial of the patent application.

To learn more:

• written description requirement
• 35 U.S.C. 112(a)
• patent rejection
• patent application