MPEP § 2163.01 — Support for the Claimed Subject Matter in Disclosure (Annotated Rules)

§2163.01 Support for the Claimed Subject Matter in Disclosure

USPTO MPEP version: BlueIron's Update: 2025-12-31

This page consolidates and annotates all enforceable requirements under MPEP § 2163.01, including statutory authority, regulatory rules, examiner guidance, and practice notes. It is provided as guidance, with links to the ground truth sources. This is information only, it is not legal advice.

Support for the Claimed Subject Matter in Disclosure

This section addresses Support for the Claimed Subject Matter in Disclosure. Primary authority: 35 U.S.C. 112(a) and 35 U.S.C. 112. Contains: 1 guidance statement and 4 other statements.

Key Rules

Topic

New Matter Objection Response

2 rules
StatutoryInformativeAlways
[mpep-2163-01-f4eaba2ca5edae3108754ce2]
Claim Must Conform to Application Disclosure
Note:
A claim should be supported by the description in an application as filed, addressing whether it is described completely enough for one of ordinary skill in the art.

A written description requirement issue generally involves the question of whether the subject matter of a claim is supported by [conforms to] the disclosure of an application as filed. If the examiner concludes that the claimed subject matter is not supported [described] in an application as filed, this would result in a rejection of the claim on the ground of a lack of written description under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, first paragraph, or denial of the benefit of the filing date of a previously filed application. The claim should not be rejected or objected to on the ground of new matter. As framed by the court in In re Rasmussen, 650 F.2d 1212, 211 USPQ 323 (CCPA 1981), the concept of new matter is properly employed as a basis for objection to amendments to the abstract, specification or drawings attempting to add new disclosure to that originally presented. While the test or analysis of description requirement and new matter issues is the same, the examining procedure and statutory basis for addressing these issues differ. See MPEP § 2163.06.

Jump to MPEP SourceNew Matter Objection ResponseComponents Required for Filing DateNew Matter Prohibition (MPEP 608.04)
StatutoryInformativeAlways
[mpep-2163-01-4ad486360196059443b597a0]
Amendments Must Not Add New Disclosure
Note:
Amendments to the abstract, specification, or drawings must not include new disclosure that was not originally presented.

A written description requirement issue generally involves the question of whether the subject matter of a claim is supported by [conforms to] the disclosure of an application as filed. If the examiner concludes that the claimed subject matter is not supported [described] in an application as filed, this would result in a rejection of the claim on the ground of a lack of written description under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, first paragraph, or denial of the benefit of the filing date of a previously filed application. The claim should not be rejected or objected to on the ground of new matter. As framed by the court in In re Rasmussen, 650 F.2d 1212, 211 USPQ 323 (CCPA 1981), the concept of new matter is properly employed as a basis for objection to amendments to the abstract, specification or drawings attempting to add new disclosure to that originally presented. While the test or analysis of description requirement and new matter issues is the same, the examining procedure and statutory basis for addressing these issues differ. See MPEP § 2163.06.

Jump to MPEP SourceNew Matter Objection ResponseComponents Required for Filing DateNew Matter Prohibition (MPEP 608.04)
Topic

New Matter Prohibition (MPEP 608.04)

2 rules
StatutoryRecommendedAlways
[mpep-2163-01-073ad1e8576a3032d8839ed0]
Claim Support Must Not Be Based on New Matter
Note:
Claims should not be rejected if they are supported by the original application disclosure without adding new information.

A written description requirement issue generally involves the question of whether the subject matter of a claim is supported by [conforms to] the disclosure of an application as filed. If the examiner concludes that the claimed subject matter is not supported [described] in an application as filed, this would result in a rejection of the claim on the ground of a lack of written description under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, first paragraph, or denial of the benefit of the filing date of a previously filed application. The claim should not be rejected or objected to on the ground of new matter. As framed by the court in In re Rasmussen, 650 F.2d 1212, 211 USPQ 323 (CCPA 1981), the concept of new matter is properly employed as a basis for objection to amendments to the abstract, specification or drawings attempting to add new disclosure to that originally presented. While the test or analysis of description requirement and new matter issues is the same, the examining procedure and statutory basis for addressing these issues differ. See MPEP § 2163.06.

Jump to MPEP SourceNew Matter Prohibition (MPEP 608.04)New Matter Objection ResponseComponents Required for Filing Date
StatutoryInformativeAlways
[mpep-2163-01-b1d81710ffa6a1100fc85251]
Same Analysis, Different Examining Procedures for Description and New Matter Issues
Note:
The rule states that while the analysis for description requirement and new matter issues is similar, the examining procedures and statutory bases differ.

A written description requirement issue generally involves the question of whether the subject matter of a claim is supported by [conforms to] the disclosure of an application as filed. If the examiner concludes that the claimed subject matter is not supported [described] in an application as filed, this would result in a rejection of the claim on the ground of a lack of written description under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, first paragraph, or denial of the benefit of the filing date of a previously filed application. The claim should not be rejected or objected to on the ground of new matter. As framed by the court in In re Rasmussen, 650 F.2d 1212, 211 USPQ 323 (CCPA 1981), the concept of new matter is properly employed as a basis for objection to amendments to the abstract, specification or drawings attempting to add new disclosure to that originally presented. While the test or analysis of description requirement and new matter issues is the same, the examining procedure and statutory basis for addressing these issues differ. See MPEP § 2163.06.

Jump to MPEP SourceNew Matter Prohibition (MPEP 608.04)Support in Original Disclosure (MPEP 2163.06)New Matter Objection Response
Topic

Filing Date Requirements

1 rules
StatutoryInformativeAlways
[mpep-2163-01-4af971438e14b17956c304e5]
Claim Must Be Described In Application As Filed
Note:
The claim should be supported by the disclosure in the application as originally filed, otherwise it will be rejected for lack of written description.

A written description requirement issue generally involves the question of whether the subject matter of a claim is supported by [conforms to] the disclosure of an application as filed. If the examiner concludes that the claimed subject matter is not supported [described] in an application as filed, this would result in a rejection of the claim on the ground of a lack of written description under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, first paragraph, or denial of the benefit of the filing date of a previously filed application. The claim should not be rejected or objected to on the ground of new matter. As framed by the court in In re Rasmussen, 650 F.2d 1212, 211 USPQ 323 (CCPA 1981), the concept of new matter is properly employed as a basis for objection to amendments to the abstract, specification or drawings attempting to add new disclosure to that originally presented. While the test or analysis of description requirement and new matter issues is the same, the examining procedure and statutory basis for addressing these issues differ. See MPEP § 2163.06.

Jump to MPEP SourceFiling Date Requirements35 U.S.C. 112(a) – Written Description & EnablementDisclosure Requirements

Citations

Primary topicCitation
Filing Date Requirements
New Matter Objection Response
New Matter Prohibition (MPEP 608.04)
35 U.S.C. § 112
Filing Date Requirements
New Matter Objection Response
New Matter Prohibition (MPEP 608.04)
35 U.S.C. § 112(a)
Filing Date Requirements
New Matter Objection Response
New Matter Prohibition (MPEP 608.04)
MPEP § 2163.06
Filing Date Requirements
New Matter Objection Response
New Matter Prohibition (MPEP 608.04)
In re Rasmussen, 650 F.2d 1212, 211 USPQ 323 (CCPA 1981)

Source Text from USPTO’s MPEP

This is an exact copy of the MPEP from the USPTO. It is here for your reference to see the section in context.

BlueIron Last Updated: 2025-12-31