+1.970.776.4355 · Loveland, CO · Russ Krajec, principal Currently accepting Fractional Chief IP Officer engagements →

  • How Long Provisional Applications Hurt You

    I had a client whose inventor would write long provisional patent[1] applications.  He would think through all the options of his inventions, and he would include every option he could conceive.

  • Patent Descriptions: Every Word Hurts You

    The patent application has two parts: the specification and the claims.

  • Do You Like My Invention?

    As an investor who focuses on IP, I get asked for feedback on inventions and patents. I have written hundreds, maybe even a thousand patent applications, reviewed countless more, invested in startup businesses, co-founded one, been an inventor on 30+ patents, wrote a book “Investing in Patents,” have a podcast “PatentMyths,” written hundreds of blog…

  • Communication Hygiene: Things You Never Say To Your Patent Attorney

    Inventors have extraordinary power in the patent process, especially in litigation. An inventor’s opinion or comments can often be twisted during litigation and ultimately, used to invalidate a patent or discredit the patent owner.

  • Avoid Wishful Thinking Patents

    Most startup CEOs want patents because they want ‘protection,’ so they go to a patent attorney. And the patent attorney is in the unfortunate situation of having to find something “inventive” amongst a bunch of run-of-the-mill technology.

  • Damage Control: Filing Patents After An Employee Leaves

    Capturing ideas so you own them can limit the damage a key employee might inflict when they go to a competitor.

  • Patent Ethics: Is it Ethical for the Patent Attorney to list themselves as an inventor?

    There is the “legal” definition of an inventor, and there is the realistic, practical definition.

  • Risks of Investing in Government-Sponsored Research

    “March-in” rights under 37 CFR 401.6 allow the government to re-possess a patent using a very arbitrary process.

  • Showing Up – The Simplest Thing

    As an early stage investor, I have only one meaningful metric: a good steward of capital.

  • Contingency Fee Litigation Is Only a Last Resort

    Contingency fee litigation is a unique feature of American Law, where attorneys perform some or all of the litigation – and they get paid only if they win. Contingency fee litigation is often associated with the “ambulance chaser” attorneys who charge no money up front, but will take 30-60% of the winnings of the lawsuits.