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A good patent lawyer cuts down on unnecessary leg work and takes pre-emptive measures. These, in the long run save the inventor time, money and frustration and even legal battles that may arise from intentional and unintentional patenting infringements.

A good patent lawyer would aid by providing direct assistance with or directing the inventor to those who can do the following:

1. Pre-emptive Measures

(The aforementioned) pre-emptive measures, eg,) Some lawyers such as Bill Heinze with Thomas Kayden Horstemeyer  & Risley of Atlanta uses the free U.S patent database www.uspto.gov/patft/index.html to keep up to date with the goings-on  of  his clients’ competitors’ and inform them when there may be a possible future conflict that “might affect (their) current and or future projects”.

2. Process development and training

 It is not uncommon for big companies to spend millions of dollars developing their ideas. One savvy patent lawyer who aid these companies would travel to anywhere in the world to give a free seminar on process and training. For the individual inventor that may not be financially feasible to host a lawyer even if s/he is providing pro bono work. But a good patent lawyer would host seminars, courses and information sessions pertaining to the process and idea / invention development

3. Patent claiming

 A good patent lawyer concisely and succinctly isolates, identifies and illustrates the least number of features with the greatest most poignant benefits. S/he does so by using various claim types, both common and uncommon that is or maybe particular for (eg- certain areas in technology). In instances where a claim may not be accepted a good patent lawyer re-view and appeal decisions where patents may require more structural explanation / clarification et cetera.

4. Patent Management

It costs to maintain a patent so it makes financial sense that any patent/s that an inventor owns must produce some revenue even if in the final analysis it pays for its own patent maintainence or up keep. An excellent patent lawyer guides and advises the inventor on ways to do so. A simple revenue earner may be selling off a patent to the highest bidder.

 

5. New Product Development

There are five stages that a patent lawyer engages in in this process.

i) State of the Art Search or Collection Search- this is a broad and general search

ii)  Patentability Searches or Novelty Searches or Prior Art Searches-the degree to which an invention can be protected

iii) Infringement Search or Right to Use Search or Clearance Search-the degree to which a previous claim may have same elements of present claims

iv) Validity Search- a U.S and overseas search for previous claims of same or similar nature / elements

v) Patent Watch-a constant and vigilant over-seeing of patents to pre-empt the possibility of problems which may occur

Some Types of 'Invention' Lawyers

1. Patent Lawyer

2. Trademark Lawyer

3. Copyright Lawyer

4. Intellectual Property Lawyer (Technology)

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