Legal Question in Intellectual Property in Maryland

Re: Patent Attourney's

One that has experience that fits your needs, who is approachable and who is respected by his peers. I can tell you that the quality of patent attorneys varies greatly. If you have an invention and are wanting to obtain a patent, then you would do well to look for an attorney who currently writes lots of patent applications and is up on the latest changes in the law and uses the latest in technology, which in patent work are of major significance, and you will want an attorney that has a technical understanding of your invention. It will save you money if the attorney can understand your invention easily because the attorney will be able to describe its merits more convincingly to others. If the attorney uses the latest computer technology, the attorney will be more efficient and more likely up to date in all other areas, as well. If the attorney is not keeping up with the latest internet and computer equipment, chances are good that the attorney is not keeping up with the latest in the law either.

On the other hand, if you have an infringement question, either a patent of yours to enforce against an infringer or a desire to try to get around someone else's patent,you want someone who is experienced in patent litigation and is currently involved in patent litigation, and the technology background is of secondary importance to being able to explain things clearly to judge or jury and secondary to knowing how to handle patent litigation strategically and procedurally.

Now, if you find a lawyer that has both attributes, which takes one with significant experience in both areas, then that is even better because the attorney can write your patent application in a way that takes into consideration the possible use of that patent in later litigation. Naturally, since I have extensive litigation and application experience and use the latest technology, I think I am the best patent attorney for anyone, but there are many other good ones.

Another route is to notice who is listed as attorney on patents in the technical area of interest and determine which ones you think prepared the patent applications that are most clearly and convincingly written. The problem with that is that the listed attorney is often not the one who actually wrote the application, since the listed name is chosen by the attorney handling the matter when the patent issues and that attorney will usually put his or her name even if someone else wrote the application.

The fact that you ask the quesion indicates you know there are good patent attorneys and not-so-good patent attorneys, which puts you ahead of most people.

One thing to keep in mind is that cost does not equate to quality and size of the firm does not equate to quality. Hire the person not the firm. In fact, if you are a small business or individual a big firm is NOT what you want because you will be shoved aside as big clients' needs understandably take precedence.