What is the doctrine of inherent disclosure in patent law?

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.

The doctrine of inherent disclosure in patent law refers to the principle that a patent application may implicitly disclose certain functions, theories, or advantages of an invention, even if they are not explicitly stated. As explained in MPEP 2163.07(a):

“Under the doctrine of inherent disclosure, when a specification describes an invention that has certain undisclosed yet inherent properties, that specification serves as adequate written description to support a subsequent patent application that explicitly recites the invention’s inherent properties.”

This means that if a device inherently performs a function or has a property, the patent application is considered to disclose that function or property, even if it’s not explicitly mentioned.