Posts Tagged ‘Patent Prosecution’
Why patents in September are a bad thing
The USPTO issues more Office Actions in September than any other month. Why is that? The chart above shows the USPTO pendency of First Actions over the last two years. Notice that there is a huge difference in September for the last two years. What is this effect? Patent Examiners have production goals and bonuses.…
Read MoreHow long does it take to get a patent?
It takes, on average, 2-4 years to get a patent from the United States Patent and Trademark Office. But, you can change the speed based on your filing strategy. The chart above shows how long a patent was pending for the patents that issued to Small Entities in the first quarter of 2021. The blue…
Read MoreNon-transitory storage media
If you have a patent claim with the term “non-transitory storage media” – you should find another patent attorney. The history of the “non-transitory storage media” claims. Who can you sue with a “non-transitory storage media” claim? Problems with the “non-transitory storage media” claims. What you can tell if your attorney uses “non-transitory storage media”…
Read MoreProvisional Patent Applications Hurt Startups
Bad Strategies for Startup Patents The patent bar does a terrible job of serving smaller clients – and provisional patent applications are a glaring example. In fact, they are taking advantage of them and causing harm to the clients they are supposed to serve. The graph shows a recent snapshot of office actions over the…
Read MoreDo Startups Give Up On Their Patents?
Patent valuation can be inferred from how much effort an applicant puts into their patent. One of the common criteria for the more sophisticated patent scoring algorithms is the number of continuation applications. Having a pending application in a patent family is a huge asset. A pending application allows you to create new patent claims…
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 MoreUSPTO’s Track One vs Patent Prosecution Highway
Updated April 2020 Why the USPTO’s Track One 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 the mark of a lazy patent attorney.…
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 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. There are several problems facing a startup company when getting patents. The biggest problem: the skillset needed for a startup’s patents is not practiced in the conventional law…
Read MoreInvestment Grade Patents Do Not Have “Broad Claims”
Broad patents can hurt you. 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 also a sales pitch that patent attorneys use to make more money. Narrow patents are bad, too. Narrow…
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