Question 3
Domain 1: Patentability Requirements and Patent FundamentalsUnder the doctrine of claim differentiation, what is presumed about the scope of an independent claim relative to its dependent claims?
Correct answer: B
Explanation
Claim differentiation presumes that different claims have different scope, so an independent claim is read more broadly than its dependent claims. A dependent claim adds a further limitation, which means the independent claim must already cover the dependent claim’s subject matter without that added restriction.
Why each option is right or wrong
A. The independent claim is narrower than the dependent claim
B. The independent claim is broader than the dependent claim
Under claim differentiation, each claim is presumed to have a distinct scope, and a dependent claim must add a further limitation to the claim it depends from. That presumption means the independent claim cannot be read so narrowly that it already includes the dependent claim’s extra restriction; otherwise the dependent claim would be redundant. The doctrine is a claim-construction presumption applied during interpretation, not a statutory rule with a fixed numerical deadline or fee.
C. The independent claim has the same scope as the dependent claim
D. The independent claim is unrelated to the dependent claim