Tom Jurgensen is the managing shareholder of Catalyst Law Group, APC, a technology-focused law firm headquartered in San Diego. He specializes, among other things, in the field of intellectual property, and discusses here what protection you can expect when you get a patent.
A patent gives you the exclusive right to your invention for a period of time, maximum 20 years, and the right to stop others from infringing on your intellectual property. But the government does not stop them from infringing. That is something you have to do yourself by suing them. So in some ways, a patent is simply a license from the government for you to sue other people.
That is one way to look at a patent. Another way to look at it concerns its value. A patent can be extremely valuable. On a big product, a patent is incredible. For example, think of some of the large drug or pharmaceutical companies. Each additional day of a patent license they keep can be worth millions of dollars. So when you look at it that way, you can see that having a patent can be important.
Infringement Laws
If somebody infringes on your patent, that means that he has taken your product or invention and is selling it, distributing it, licensing it or making it without your express consent. Once you have a patent, nobody is allowed to do that for the term of the patent, which is usually 20 years. And if they do so, they are infringing on your rights.
When somebody infringes on your patent, or if you suspect somebody is infringing on your patent, you need the services of a patent lawyer. First you need to confirm as best you can that that is happening, and if it is you can try to write to them and ask them stop.
Usually that won’t work, so you will have to hire an attorney and go to court. If the court finds them guilty of infringing you can get money damages for sales you lost, and you can also get what is called a injunction, which is an order stopping them from infringing. If they are making your patented product without first obtaining a license from you, for example, a injunction means they have to stop.
Enforcing Against Infringement
Enforcing your patent from infringement can be expensive. But it is still worth calling a qualified patent attorney to evaluate your options are and whether this is really the best way to approach the suspected infringement. As patent rights are often enforced in a court, a lawyer would be invaluable if it comes to that. On rare occasions, a patent can be declared invalid when a third party challenges it.
This article is for informational purposes only. You should not rely on this article as a legal opinion on any specific facts or circumstances, and you should not act upon this information without seeking professional counsel. Publication of this article and your receipt of this article does not create an attorney-client relationship.
