Last updated: August 17, 2026

What Are Claims, and How Many Can I Use?

Claims are an important part of a patent application, as they are what define the scope of the protection afforded by the patent and to which questions of infringement are judged by the courts.

More than one claim may be presented provided they differ substantially from each other and are not unduly multiplied. One or more claims may be presented in dependent form, referring back to and further limiting another claim or claims in the same application. Any dependent claim which refers back to more than one other claim is considered a “multiple dependent claim.”

Multiple dependent claims shall refer to other claims in the alternative only. A multiple dependent claim shall not serve as a basis for any other multiple dependent claim. Claims in dependent form shall be construed to include all of the limitations of the claim incorporated by reference into the dependent claim. A multiple dependent claim shall incorporate all the limitations of each of the particular claims in relation to which it is being considered.

The claim(s) must conform to the invention as set forth in the remainder of the specification, and the terms and phrases used in the claims must find clear support or antecedent basis in the description so that the meaning of those terms may be ascertainable by reference to the description.

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