MPEP § 608.01(r) — Derogatory Remarks About Prior Art in Specification (Annotated Rules)

§608.01(r) Derogatory Remarks About Prior Art in Specification

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

This page consolidates and annotates all enforceable requirements under MPEP § 608.01(r), 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.

Derogatory Remarks About Prior Art in Specification

This section addresses Derogatory Remarks About Prior Art in Specification. Contains: 1 permission and 2 other statements.

Key Rules

Topic

Patent Application Content

3 rules
MPEP GuidancePermittedAlways
[mpep-608-01-r-02b546499e6a8614eec6689c]
Invention Specification Must Not Disparage Others' Inventions
Note:
The applicant must not make derogatory remarks about the inventions of others in the specification, even when comparing their own invention to the general state of the art.

The applicant may refer to the general state of the art and the advance thereover made by his or her invention, but he or she is not permitted to make derogatory remarks concerning the inventions of others. Derogatory remarks are statements disparaging the products or processes of any particular person other than the applicant, or statements as to the merits or validity of applications or patents of another person. Mere comparisons with the prior art are not considered to be disparaging, per se.

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MPEP GuidanceInformativeAlways
[mpep-608-01-r-8a99dca37ba1331591e982f0]
Specification Must Not Contain Derogatory Remarks About Others' Inventions
Note:
The specification must not include statements disparaging the products, processes, or patents of other persons.

The applicant may refer to the general state of the art and the advance thereover made by his or her invention, but he or she is not permitted to make derogatory remarks concerning the inventions of others. Derogatory remarks are statements disparaging the products or processes of any particular person other than the applicant, or statements as to the merits or validity of applications or patents of another person. Mere comparisons with the prior art are not considered to be disparaging, per se.

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MPEP GuidanceInformativeAlways
[mpep-608-01-r-2bc3deae0104f47723cc2d32]
Comparisons with Prior Art Not Disparaging
Note:
The applicant may compare their invention to existing prior art but must not make derogatory remarks about others' inventions or processes.

The applicant may refer to the general state of the art and the advance thereover made by his or her invention, but he or she is not permitted to make derogatory remarks concerning the inventions of others. Derogatory remarks are statements disparaging the products or processes of any particular person other than the applicant, or statements as to the merits or validity of applications or patents of another person. Mere comparisons with the prior art are not considered to be disparaging, per se.

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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