What is the purpose of maintaining claim numbers throughout patent prosecution?
The purpose of maintaining original claim numbers throughout patent prosecution is to ensure easy traceability of each claim’s history. According to MPEP 707.07(i):
Since a claim retains its original numeral throughout the prosecution of the application, its history through successive actions is thus easily traceable.
This consistent numbering system allows patent examiners, attorneys, and inventors to quickly reference and track changes to specific claims across multiple Office actions.
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