What is the purpose of an affidavit or declaration under 37 CFR 1.130?

An affidavit or declaration under 37 CFR 1.130 serves to disqualify a disclosure as prior art by establishing that the disclosure was made by the inventor or a joint inventor, or the subject matter disclosed was obtained directly or indirectly from the inventor or a joint inventor. As stated in MPEP 717.01:

An applicant or patent owner may submit an appropriate affidavit or declaration to disqualify a disclosure as prior art by establishing that the subject matter disclosed was obtained directly or indirectly from the inventor or a joint inventor.

This mechanism is crucial for inventors to protect their inventions from being invalidated by their own disclosures or those derived from their work.

To learn more:

• affidavit
• declaration
• 37 CFR 1.130
• prior art
• disqualification

To learn more:

• 37 CFR 1.130