Intellectual Property News

First-to-File versus First-to-Invent Systems

            In the first-to-file (FTF) system, a patent is granted to the first applicant(s) to file a patent application for the invention.  The FTF system is used in all countries of the world, except the United States.  By contrast, the U.S. operates according to the first-to-invent (FTI) system.   In the FTI system, patent rights are granted to the person or party with the earliest date of invention.  The U.S. Congress is currently considering shifting to the FTF system, which has the apparent advantage of putting the U.S. in harmony with the rest of the world.  However, the shift could have some negative impact.  For example, the FTF system may favor large corporations with greater in-house resources and support for filing patent applications quickly, and may put small business or sole inventors, with more limited resources, at a disadvantage.  In addition, the quality of patent applications may be significantly compromised in the rush to get patent applications filed as soon as possible.

How SLPG's Mode of Operation (M.O.) is Suited

for a Potential Shift to a First-to-File System

            As part of our M.O. at SLPG, we aim both to capture an early filing date for our clients and to provide high-quality applications.  We typically recommend filing a low-cost "emergency" patent application with the USPTO for a new invention, followed by a quality application filed, for example, about six to ten weeks later.  The "emergency" patent application is usually filed within hours to days of receiving a client's approval.  In most cases, the "emergency" application may preserve a filing date for the invention, while allowing our patent drafters sufficient time to perform proper prior art searching and to prepare and file a quality application with in-depth technical details, high-quality drawings, and broad claiming.  Accordingly, the quality of our services should be minimally impacted by the looming shift to the FTF system by our already existing M.O.

Staff News

Meet Gary Bowers 

Gary Bowers will be assisting with marketing and administrative support. A University of Arizona graduate, Gary has been a Coordinator, Analyst and Help Desk resource for a major Valley hospital system; an encoding operator at a Remote Encoding Center of the US Postal Service; a newsletter writer and editor of a semimonthly publication  with a distribution of more than 75 employees; an author of press releases and sponsorship contracts for an international sportsmarketing firm; and a substitute teacher of more than ten years' duration. On the personal side, Gary is an award-winning artist/sculptor, a three-time marathoner, and the Second Prize winner of Roger Ebert's Great Limerick Contest of 2009. Of his new association with Stoneman Law Patent Group, Gary says, "What a dream job! The clients are on the cutting edge of inventive knowledge, my colleagues are friendly yet all business, and the dress code is Business Casual, with jeans on Friday--that's the way I like it!"   

 Puzzle 

All the words and phrases in Boldface below are in the Grid above. Try Across, Down, Diagonal, Backwards, and Forwards. The first reply to this e-mail with all the correct answers circled will win a prize valued at $25.00! 

FLO: Whatcha up to, Joe? 

JOE: Well, I've got an Invention. I wonder if it's Patentable. 

FLO: Joe, it's got to be Original, Unobvious, and Useful. Is it? 

JOE: Yes! Yes! Yes! See my Prototype? Does it not Embody Novelty? I'm sure I'll be First to File. 

FLO: Joe, did you check the USPTO website for similar inventions? Non-diligence is a Red Flag, y'know. 

JOE: Hey, I'm an Edison, not an Examiner. I'll let those Finders of the Flanges do the Patent Search FOR me. 

FLO: Not so fast, Joe! We're not 18th Century Europe, after all. To make Varsity, you've got to play smart. 

JOE: I'm smart! Heuristic approach, Coral Reefs elegance--gonna stake my Claim while I still have a Window. 

FLO: OK then. But you can't use Patent Applied For, much less Patent Pending, without a Patent Application. 

JOE: Yeah--got to admit I'm shaky on my tech writing skills. And you need drawings in TIFF format, right? 

FLO: Indeed. Hey--why not call Stoneman Law Patent Group? Fixed rates, no nickel-diming! 

JOE: Do they do Provisional Applications? 

FLO: Oh, HECK yeah! And all the way through International Non-Provisional if your thing skyrockets! 

JOE: Great! Thanks! I'll call them right away. Like NOW. Ciao, baby!!