Prosecution disclaimer

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In United States patent law, prosecution disclaimer is a legal doctrine that provides that the statements made by an applicant for a patent in the course of prosecution may act to limit the literal coverage of the patent claims. Prosecution disclaimer similarly operates to reduce the scope of the claims under the doctrine of equivalents.

Unlike prosecution history estoppel, where claim amendments only limit the scope of the claims under the doctrine of equivalents, prosecution disclaimer limits the literal scope of the claims and their reach under the doctrine of equivalents.