How do we help you protect them?
One of our patent attorneys, with experience in your technology area, will meet with you to discuss your invention and draft a patent application. Once you are happy with the wording, we file it at the UK IP Office. This first stage sets the priority date for your invention.
As your idea develops, we help you shape it. You may add new features or see further markets emerge for it. The next key step comes within 12 months of the first filing, when you decide to go international. We discuss any recent developments and work with you to re-draft your application to accommodate these. We usually then file an international (PCT) application – a cost-effective option that covers most countries. A few countries (e.g. Taiwan) don’t work under the PCT convention, so we may advise some other filings and tactics at that stage.
Eighteen months after the first (UK) filing, your PCT document is published in full – up to that point, your idea is secret, so you can use that advantage wisely. A year after that, the PCT stage ‘goes national’ – we help you to decide then in which countries/regions you want to take the patent forward. We recognise that the process is becoming more expensive at this stage and that this is a significant investment decision. We work with you to optimise the costs and benefits. As your application comes up for examination in each selected national or regional office, we ‘prosecute’ the application (i.e. negotiate with the examiner on your behalf). Reaching the important grant stage takes years in many countries and rules vary significantly between countries, but we stay with you, maintaining consistent support throughout.
If you select the European Patent Office (EPO) at the national stage, your application will be examined there. If granted, it becomes a patent in each EPO state you select. Translation and grant fees arise then. Your protection starts from the priority date of the initial filing, but the future value of your investment will depend on how well your choice of countries maps on to the markets. We help you take the right decisions as we manage your patent portfolio for you.
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