U.S. patent law is going through some changes with the implementation of the America Invents Act (AIA), and these changes could affect businesses.
“The biggest change is that in the past, a patent would be awarded to the first to invent and under the AIA, it is now the first to file,” says Tim Nauman, a partner with Fay Sharpe LLP.
The transition represents a big change in U.S. patent culture because the first to invent system in the U.S. was viewed by many as beneficial to entrepreneurs. If you were the first to invent, you could fight for the patent regardless of how quickly someone else filed for it. However, under first to file, some say it is now the one with the most resources who gets to the patent office first who wins.
Smart Business spoke with Fay Sharpe partners Joe Dreher, Eric Highman and Nauman about how changes to U.S. patent law will impact businesses when they take effect in March 2013.
What benefits come with the change in the patent law?
The U.S. was historically the only country that issued patents under first to invent, so this harmonizes U.S. laws with those in other countries. People want consistency; they don’t want to deal with different laws in each country.
Also, the determination of who invented first was sometimes a complicated process, called interference, which the Patent Office or federal District Court would undertake in the event of a dispute over who came up with an idea. The new system eliminates that administrative or court proceeding with regard to this issue, which created some uncertainty for businesses
What can companies do to stay competitive, given the changes to the law?
Ideally, if you think of an idea today, file it today. But while there is no quicker process to getting an invention application on file and established, reality would tell you that this probably isn’t going to happen.
Companies are accustomed to having their employees/inventors fill out an invention disclosure form that they then submit to an internal review process. But that takes time. So under the AIA, the best thing to do is file a provisional patent application as quick as possible and flesh out the internal review details later so as not to get beat to the Patent Office.
While that takes care of the early part, filing multiple provisional applications is just as important because as the idea transforms into a marketable concept, it can change. As the development process goes forward, there could be other features that need to be filed in much the same way as the first. If you haven’t described all of those features in the original filing, you can potentially be second to someone who has.
What’s the difference between a provisional and a nonprovisional application and which is preferred?
In the U.S., provisional patent applications can serve as a basis for garnering an early filing date. It establishes a reliable priority date for “first to file” purposes, but a patent won’t be issued from it. Rather, a nonprovisional patent application must be filed within one year from the earliest provisional application. It is the nonprovisional application that is searched and substantively examined by the U.S. patent examiner. The official fees for nonprovisional applications are more than twice as expensive, so it makes sense to file multiple provisional applications quickly and at a lower rate.
However, there are competing concerns of getting the provisional application filed quickly and getting it filed with sufficient detail. It’s important to get as much detail as possible in the provisional application(s) because only that which is disclosed in a provisional application is entitled to the priority date. If there isn’t enough detail in the application to make the invention work, it may not qualify for patent protection.
Does public disclosure by the inventor impact rights to a patent?
The best approach is to file a detailed provisional application before the product is made public or file as soon as possible after the disclosure. If the application is not filed before public disclosure, the inventor still has one year from such disclosure to file a patent application in the U.S. However, under the AIA, this one-year grace period is subject to someone else filing modifications or variations ahead of the inventor’s patent application on what has been disclosed. There is a risk that businesses might suffer from a false sense of security thinking that they don’t have to file their patent application immediately because of public disclosure. Therefore, if the disclosure has occurred, file the detailed provisional application as soon after as possible.
Foreign filing considerations may also come into play. If you file for a patent application in the U.S., you have one year in which to file in a foreign country with the benefit of your first filing date. However, if you publicly disclose your invention before you file your patent application, you destroy your patent rights abroad. So, public disclosure before filing is not advisable if you are going to file for a patent in another country. Filing a provisional application prior to public disclosure preserves the potential of getting foreign patent rights.
What should companies do ahead of enactment of the new laws?
Under the current law, you can go back and prove an earlier invention date. For applications filed under the new law — beginning March 16, 2013 — it’s first to file, which means you can’t go back before your initial filing date to prove earlier invention.
Before AIA takes hold, finish all of your provisional applications and, in some instances, convert existing provisional applications with added features/subsequent development work to nonprovisional applications by March 15, 2013 so you still have the benefit of the first to invent law.
Tim Nauman, Eric Highman and Joe Dreher are partners at Fay Sharpe. Reach them at (216) 363-9000.
Insights Legal Affairs is brought to you by Fay Sharpe.
