Can a legal entity be named as an applicant in a PCT application?
Yes, a legal entity can be named as an applicant in a PCT application. The MPEP 1806 states:
“Where the applicant is a legal entity, the entity’s name shall be indicated.”
This means that:
- Companies, corporations, and other legal entities can be applicants
- The official name of the legal entity should be used
- Individual inventors may still need to be named, depending on the designation
It’s important to note that the applicant and inventor are not always the same in PCT applications. The applicant is the entity or person who will own the rights to the patent, while the inventor is the person who created the invention.
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