How does the AIA 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(1)(A) exception apply to joint inventors?

The AIA 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(1)(A) exception applies to disclosures made by joint inventors in a specific way:

  • A disclosure made by one or more joint inventors of a claimed invention is not prior art to the claimed invention under AIA 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) if it was made one year or less before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
  • This exception applies regardless of whether the disclosure was made by one, some, or all of the joint inventors, and regardless of whether the inventors are named in the same order on the disclosure and the application.

As stated in MPEP 2153.01(a): ‘The Office has provided a mechanism for filing an affidavit or declaration (under 37 CFR 1.130) to establish that a disclosure is not prior art under AIA 35 U.S.C. 102(a) due to an exception in AIA 35 U.S.C. 102(b).’

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Tags: AIA, joint inventors, prior art exception