The Duty of Disclosure Imposed by the US Patent Laws on Patenting Persons

All persons associated with a pending US non-provisional patent application have an ongoing duty of disclosure requiring them to inform the Examiner about any known prior art reference that the Examiner may consider “material” to the patentability of the pending application. By “all persons,” they mean each inventor, the Applicant, its representative, and any agents thereof must satisfy the Duty. Any doubts about whether or not to disclose a particular piece of information should always be resolved in favor of disclosure.