When filing a conventional direct priority U.S. nonprovisional patent application claiming priority to a foreign application filed within 12 months (Paris Convention, not PCT), an English translation of the…

Foreign Trademark Registration Options: Madrid Procotol vs. Direct Foreign Filing Trademark rights are territorial. Your US trademark registration does not provide you with rights in…

Inter Partes Review, or IPR, is a mini-trial held before the USPTO’s Patent and Trial Appeal Board (PTAB) to cancel specific claims of a patent on the…

Design Patents vs. Utility Patents Design patent or utility patent? This is a critical question that you need to resolve early in your patent journey.…

How do you decide which goods or services to include in a trademark application? Trademarks do not exist in a vacuum. A trademark must always…

What are the consequences of losing a TTAB trademark opposition or cancellation? So you have applied to register a trademark and everything has proceeded smoothly…

What is an FTO search? Also known as a Freedom-To-Operate (FTO) or right-to-use search, a patent infringement search looks for patents that may cover a…

Can an expired patent still be prior art against a pending application? Yes, an expired patent is still prior art. Prior art has nothing to…

Should I share my idea before applying for a patent? It’s almost never to your benefit to disclose your concept before filing a patent application. By…

How can you avoid infringing a utility patent? When it comes to utility patents, would a slight product modification avoid patent infringement? How would you…

What is a trademark Notice of Publication? A Notice of Publication in a trademark application is good news for the applicant. It means that the…

What is a trademark disclaimer? Sometimes a trademark may include one or more words regarded as merely descriptive or generic when viewed in connection with…

What is a joint development agreement? A joint development agreement (JDA) sets the terms for two or more parties working together to develop a particular product…

Each co-owner of a jointly held patent can make, use, sell and license the patented invention. Licensing is the main concern with a jointly owned…

What are parent and child applications? In the patent world, parent and child applications may be relevant when continuing applications are involved. A parent application…