Does the duty of disclosure apply to continuation-in-part applications?

This page is an FAQ based on guidance from the Manual of Patent Examining Procedure. It is provided as guidance, with links to the ground truth sources. This is information only: it is not legal advice.

Yes, the duty of disclosure applies to continuation-in-part (CIP) applications. The MPEP specifically addresses this situation:

“In a continuation-in-part application, individuals covered by 37 CFR 1.56 have a duty to disclose to the Office all information known to be material to patentability which became available between the filing date of the prior application and the national or PCT international filing date of the continuation-in-part application. See 37 CFR 1.56(e).”

This means that for a CIP application, applicants must disclose any new material information that has come to light since the filing of the parent application. This ensures that the USPTO has all relevant information when examining the new or modified claims in the CIP application.