4.3.2 Art. 123

Amendments in a claim leading to a scope of protection which is smaller but falls partly outside the extent of protection conferred by the claim previously on file must be dealt with cautiously. Even if the amendment constitutes a limitation, such a claim would generally contravene Art. 123(3) (see also H‑V, 7, for Art. 123(3) in the case of a change of category of a claim).

For interpretation of Art. 84 and Art. 123(2), see F‑IV, 4 and H‑IV, 5.4. The description and drawings are used to interpret the claims in accordance with Art. 69(1) and its Protocol on Interpretation. Amendments made to these parts might therefore introduce matter contrary to Art. 123(3) (see H‑IV, 3.1 and H-IV, 3.3).