Patents
Obtaining patents on inventions and innovations is one of the most effective ways to protect the value of your intellectual property. The patenting process is a central element of our firm, with a full range of portfolio management services to help you decide which inventions to patent, where to seek protection and how long to maintain your patents.
What we handle
Applications
Legal services for filing design and utility patent applications.
Filings
Provisional applications to secure an early filing date, and non-provisional applications, the full application examined by the USPTO, filed directly or within 12 months of a provisional.
Prosecution
Patent prosecution services for filed applications, including responses to USPTO office actions and actions initiated by third parties.
Research
We can arrange a prior art search to give you a sense of the scope and breadth of your invention.
Strategy
A full range of portfolio management services: which inventions to patent, where to seek protection and how long to maintain your patents.
After issuance
Post-issuance services, including patent portfolio management and licensing.
About our patent services
Obtaining patents on inventions and innovations is one of the most effective ways to protect the value of your intellectual property (IP). As such, the patenting process is a central element of our firm.
In addition to prosecuting patent applications, we provide a full range of portfolio management services. Aware of clients’ business needs, we apply our diverse experience to help clients decide which inventions to patent, where to seek patent protection, and how long to maintain those patents.
Our firm prepares and files design and utility patent applications, both provisional and non-provisional. We also manage applications once they’re filed, handling all correspondence for your matter, including responses to office actions issued by the USPTO and to actions initiated by third parties.
Timing is often as important as substance. For many clients, we recommend filing a provisional application first. It secures an early filing date, lets you use “patent pending,” and gives you up to a year to refine the invention before filing a comprehensive non-provisional application.
During that year, you can test the market and gauge the invention’s commercial potential. We can also arrange a prior art search to clarify the scope of your invention. Before you launch, a freedom-to-operate (FTO) analysis can confirm whether your product risks infringing existing patents.
After your patent issues, we provide post-issuance services such as portfolio management and licensing.
Filing strategy
A provisional application secures an early filing date and lets you use “patent pending” while you refine the invention. A non-provisional application is the full application the USPTO examines and the one that can become an issued patent. You can file it directly, or within 12 months of a provisional. We’ll recommend the right path for your invention and timeline.
International protection
File your PCT application within 12 months of your first filing, such as a U.S. provisional application, to keep your original priority date.
An International Searching Authority reviews the prior art and issues a written opinion on patentability, so you can gauge your chances before investing in foreign filings.
The PCT generally gives you until 30 months from your priority date to choose the countries where you want protection, time to test markets and line up investors or partners.
We file in each country or region you choose, such as Europe, China, Japan or Korea, working with trusted local counsel, and each office examines and grants its own patent.
There is no single “international patent.” The PCT is a filing system: each country still grants its own patent. And because many countries require filing before any public disclosure, plan your international strategy before you show, publish or sell your invention.
FAQ
General information, not legal advice for your situation.
Still have questions?
Speak with a Registered Patent Attorney
Schedule a consultation to discuss your matter, or call (408) 520-8701.
Your patent attorney
A Registered Patent Attorney licensed to practice law in California and to represent inventors and companies before the USPTO. Before becoming an attorney, he worked as a process engineer at Intel Corporation, then moved to Intel's legal department for patent licensing and prosecution.
From inventions to brands, get strategic patent and intellectual property guidance from a firm at the intersection of technology, business and law.
