Information Disclosure Statement

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An Information Disclosure Statement (often abbreviated as IDS) refers to a submission of relevant background art or information to the United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) by an applicant for a patent during the patent prosecution process. There is a duty on all patent applicants to disclose prior art or background information that may be relevant to the patentability of the applicant's invention, as established by the United States Code section 35 and related sections of 37 CFR and the MPEP. If a patent applicant knowingly or intentionally fails to submit prior art to the USPTO, then any patent that later issues from the patent application may be declared unenforceable. Furthermore, the duty to submit such relevant information to the USPTO lies not only on the applicant or inventor, but also on any patent attorney or other legal staff employed by the applicant.

The prior art or background information submitted in an IDS typically includes other issued patents, published patent applications, scientific journal articles, books, magazine articles, or any other published material that is relevant to the invention disclosed in the applicant's own patent application, irrespective of the country or language in which the published material was made. However, if the relevant information is printed in a language other than English, the USPTO may require the applicant to submit a translation of the material.

As of October 2006, prior art or other background information may be submitted on paper using a USPTO-issed form, or electronically using the USPTO's electronic filing system. {stub}