Update on the “gold-standard” of direct and unambiguous disclosure

When assessing whether a combination of features is disclosed in the application as filed, the so-called “gold standard” requires that the combination be directly and unambiguously derivable from the original documents. It is not sufficient that the skilled person could possibly derive the combination from the description, or assemble it from individual embodiments disclosed therein (EPO BoA 20 Mar 2025, T 298/22).