why would someone hire a patent agent instead of a patent attorney

by Javier Wilkinson 8 min read

Patent agents are only specifically allowed to practice patent law through or with the USPTO

United States Patent and Trademark Office

The United States Patent and Trademark Office is an agency in the U.S. Department of Commerce that issues patents to inventors and businesses for their inventions, and trademark registration for product and intellectual property identification.

. However, these individuals are often hired by law firms due to their extensive technical backgrounds. Legal departments for larger corporations will hire these people at times for the same reason.

The USPTO recommends that patent applicants hire a patent attorney or patent agent to assist with the application process because of its legal complexity. 3 In the United States, patent agents can perform many of the same tasks as patent attorneys, including representing clients before the USPTO.

Full Answer

Should I hire a patent agent or patent attorney?

Nov 09, 2020 · In many cases, a patent attorney can be considered for all legal matters involving patents, trademarks, infringements, and other legal matters, while a patent agent can only assist with patent applications and filings.

What are the job opportunities for patents?

May 22, 2016 · Patent Agent vs Patent Attorney The table above shows a quick summary of a patent agent vs a patent attorney. As you can see, both agents and attorneys can handle all matters related to writing and filing a patent. In most routine patent matters it should not make a difference if you hire a patent agent or patent attorney.

Who is a experienced patent agent?

Sep 23, 2019 · Avoiding A Loss of Potential Patent Rights: Patent Attorneys help clients and potential clients understand what steps are needed to seek patent rights and how urgently those steps must be taken to preserve patent rights. Not knowing about such deadlines can cause a total loss of potential patent rights.

What should I look for when choosing a patent agent?

Jul 26, 2019 · Inventors sometimes wonder if they can pursue a patent by themselves, mainly to save on the expense of hiring a patent lawyer. There are self-help books available for those who decide to try to get a patent on their own, but reading a book will likely be a poor substitute for a patent attorney’s experience and judgment.

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What is the difference between a patent attorney and a patent agent?

A patent attorney has attended law school and taken and passed an examination for registration to practice law in that state. A patent agent is not a lawyer and cannot provide any legal advice, including advice on patent licensing or patent infringement.

Why should you hire a patent agent?

A lawyer or agent can provide guidance into how an Examiner is likely to view a patent application and assist in preparing a detailed application to improve the chances of successfully obtaining an issued patent.

Is patent agent necessary?

Hence, the right patent professional (patent agent) with appropriate experience can remarkably add value to patent application. The patent agent provides maximum possible protection for your invention since the drafting of the patent is done from a technical as well as legal perspective.

Who can be a patent agent explain the rights of a patent agent?

Section 2(1)(n) of the Patents Act, 1970 defines a patent agent as “a person for the time being registered under the Act as a patent agent”. Therefore, a patent agent is qualified to deal with all the legal aspects associated with a patent application for eg.Jul 24, 2020

Can a patent agent file a patent?

Can file a patent with the USPTO? Yes, all patent agents, by definition have passed the patent bar exam and are authorized to file your invention with the USPTO.Oct 21, 2018

How much is a patent agent?

If you plan to hire a patent attorney, you can expect to pay a minimum of $2,000 just for their time alone. Filing a provisional patent application will cost $130 for small entities such as independent inventors and small businesses.

What is meant by patent agent?

A patent agent, also known as a patent practitioner, is a professional licensed by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to advise on and assist inventors with patent applications.

What is a patent agent job like?

Patent agents help clients secure patents, which are ownership interests in scientific inventions like software, engines, equipment and medicines. The way patents are secured is by preparing, filing and prosecuting applications involving new inventions with the United States Patent & Trademark Office (the "USPTO").

Can lawyers be patent agent?

By the 2005 Amendment, the advocates were disqualified to be the patent agents. In the light of the above judgment given by the Court, all advocates having a science degree can file patent applications for their clients and they do not have to register themselves as patent agent with the patent office.May 7, 2013

What are the eligibility requirements for becoming a patent agent?

He should have completed a degree in either Science, Engineering, or Technology from any university established under the law for the time being in force in the territory of India or should possess such other equivalent qualifications as specified by the Central Government; In this regard, final year students can also ...Apr 8, 2021

Who can practice patent law?

Only U.S. citizens or permanent residents can be registered to practice law in patent matters before the USPTO. See 37 CFR § 11.6(a) and (b).Aug 7, 2017

How many patent agents are in the US?

How Many Patent Agents Are There in the United States? According to the USPTO and statistics relating to the agency, the office has 42,503 agents that are active and registered practitioners. There are over 30,000 patent attorneys and over 10,000 patent agents.

Patent Agent vs Patent Attorney

The table above shows a quick summary of a patent agent vs a patent attorney. As you can see, both agents and attorneys can handle all matters related to writing and filing a patent. In most routine patent matters it should not make a difference if you hire a patent agent or patent attorney.

So who is better, a patent agent vs patent attorney?

Since we have already learned that both patent agents and patent attorneys can write and file patents for you, how do you choose? It is very hard for the average person to know who is a good patent agent and a good patent attorney.

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What is the difference between a patent attorney and a patent agent?

Differences between Registered Patent Attorneys and Registered Patent Agents 1 Only Registered Patent Attorneys have attended law school and hold an additional Law Degree which provides them with an edge in the Techno-legal process of Patents. 2 Only Registered Patent Attorneys can send Legal Notices if there is a potential infringement of your patent. 3 Only Registered Patent Attorneys can appear in Court of Law in case of Infringement. 4 It is preferable to work with a Registered Patent Attorney, if you need any legal advice for Infringement, Licensing or Commercialization of your Patent and related Agreements

What is the aim of a patent?

As the aim of the patent is to stop third parties from infringement of your invention whereas bad patents fail miserably at that. Only Registered Patent Attorneys have attended law school and hold an additional Law Degree which provides them with an edge in the Techno-legal process of Patents.

Why hire a patent attorney?

So, you want to hire a patent attorney to protect your new innovation. It could be for AI, Blockchain, Machine learning, IoT, or some other cutting edge technology that you are developing.

How many patents were filed in 2015?

According to US Patents and Trademark office 629,647 total patent applications filed in the year 2015. On average, about two thirds of those applications will issue eventually, but the likelihood of receiving a patent varies wildly with certain technologies having only a 10% chance of success.

How long does a patent last?

Patent rights last for up to 20 years from the date the idea was first filed. And it could be 3 or more years before a patent is granted. Given such long time frames, it is in your best interests to ask your patent attorney to give a ballpark estimate of the costs that you would incur during this entire period.

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What Is The Difference Between A Patent Attorney and A Patent Agent?

  • To protect and commercialize an invention, the inventor must get a patent for it in India (or abroad as well). To do so, one must traverse the complex path of patent filingand patent examination before attaining the promised land: a patent registration or grant. An inventor may choose to do so himself as no one is better acquainted with the invention than him. However, patents are inter…
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Registered Patent Attorney Or Registered Patent Agent

  • Generally, both the terms Registered Patent Attorney and Registered Patent Agent are used interchangeably. However, there are significant differences between a Registered Patent Attorney and a Registered Patent Agent. Although Registered Patent Agent can perform most of the basic functions related to patents, the legal exposure of the Registered Patent Attorney provides him …
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Similarities Between Registered Patent Attorneys and Registered Patent Agents

  1. Technical Degree such as B.Sc., B.Tech., M.Tech. etc
  2. Qualified the Patent Agent Examination. You should note that their names must be in the list of Registered Patent Agents published on the Indian Patent Office Website.
  3. Provide advice related to Patentability of the Invention.
  4. Draft & File Patent Applications.
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Differences Between Registered Patent Attorneys and Registered Patent Agents

  • Based on the above similarities you may think that the registered patent agent can perform all services required for filing a patent and patent registrationor patent grant. However, the difference lies in how they achieve patent registration or grant of a patent. We do not say or claim that Registered Patent Agents cannot get a grant of a good patent, but it is the legal exposure of the …
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