Patent Timing - When to File

An ongoing tension exists between business realities and patent laws.  To make better decisions, the costs of obtaining patent protection should be deferred as long as possible.  To obtain the best patent protection available, a patent application should be filed as early as possible.  Smart decision-making requires that these counterveiling concerns be weighed in the determination of when to take action.

U.S. law provides a one year "grace period" for filing a patent application:  A U.S. Patent is invalid if no application was filed within one year of the first time that the invention was offered for sale, sold, publicly used, or publicly disclosed.  Most foreign countries require a first, priority application to be filed earlier; prior to the first time the invention becomes available to the public.  A common recommendation is to file, at a minimum, at least a provisional patent application prior to the first offer for sale/sale/use/disclosure of the invention.

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