Working with Attorneys
Is Your Patent Examiner Awful? One of the Patent Myths
The Myth that the Patent Examiner does not understand your invention. One of the myths that is perpetuated by the patent bar is that the examiners somehow do not understand your invention. The truth is that the examination process is far better than most patent attorneys will admit, and that is part of why startups…
Read MoreMy first invention
My first job out of college was at McDonnell Aircraft in St. Louis. At the time, we made military fighter jets: the F-15, F-18, and Harrier AV-8B. I was assigned to a little research group exploring different ways to use thermoplastic composites. It was there that I had my first “invention.” I wrote up a…
Read MoreWhy Your Patent Attorney Does Not Want Your Patent To Be Granted
There is a perverse incentive for your patent attorney to *not* get your patent allowed. It is called “money.” Clients are at the mercy of their patent attorneys. For small companies who do not have inhouse patent counsel, they outsource their patents to outside counsel who have a financial incentive to keep a patent pending…
Read MoreData Driven Patents
Image (C) Russ Krajec 2020 Updated April 2021. The patent system requires that we look ahead and guess the future. If we are right, there is a huge reward. This process can be powerfully addictive, as it is the same psychology as lottery tickets. Patents are bets that the marketplace will adopt a technology. The…
Read MoreUSPTO’s Track One vs Patent Prosecution Highway
Updated April 2020 Screenshot taken 5 Apr 2021 from https://www.uspto.gov/dashboard/patents/pendency.html Why the USPTO’s Track One[1] is the mark of a lazy patent attorney. If your patent attorney is suggesting “Track One” to expedite your patent case – be wary. It is a trap. I would go so far as to say that Track One is…
Read MoreThe Patent System is Broken – but not in the way you think it is.
The patent system has some weird quirks that makes it feel broken. In truth, you do not want to know how the sausage gets made at the Patent Office, and patent laws are all weirdly nuanced with few bright lines. That is just the way it is. The real problem is the patent applicants, not…
Read MorePatent Myths – “Broad Claims are a Good Thing.”
Inventors like to think that their patents are “broad” and somehow that is good. It is not. The risks with broad patents are that they are more easily invalidated, but it is basically a sales pitch that patent attorneys use to make more money. Narrow patents are bad, too. (Learn more about this and other…
Read MoreWhat Are The Costs To Enforce or Defend a Patent?
Two stages of litigation: claim construction and the trail. Post Grant Review (or Inter-Partes Review) Patent litigation can be very expensive, and the costs of litigation go up considerably with the amount of money at risk. Not to mention, just getting a patent can be very expensive. The risk of patent litigation can be handled…
Read MoreWhy Startup Patents Are Doomed From The Start
Patents for small companies are fundamentally different from patents for large companies. The decisions made – and skills needed – to develop the two are very different. Old tractor in the Alpine meadows There are several problems facing a startup company when getting patents. The biggest problem: the skillset needed for a startup’s patents is…
Read MoreBlueIron is Changing the Legal Industry
BlueIron was formed in response to a weakness in the way patents are prepared. My personal experience was that I needed a patent attorney’s advice and experience – and I paid for it – but he had continually refused to give it to me. It wasn’t until after I took the patent bar and began…
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