Legal Question in Intellectual Property in California

filing provisional patent app w/ online legal service

I am thinking of using LegalZoom, an online law document service, for a provisional patent application. Is this service acceptable or would it be worth it to see a patent attorney in person? Also is getting a provisional patent a good option versus going straight for a full patent? The invention is non technical and is for a consumer product I'd want to sell to a company versus sell direct to customers.


Asked on 4/25/06, 9:18 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Michael Cohen, Esq. Law Office of Michael N. Cohen, P.C.

Re: filing provisional patent app w/ online legal service

I have seen provisional applications "filled out" by those services. You must understand that they are not attorneys, let alone patent attorneys. Provisional patent applications must meet the statutory requirements of allowing one of "ordinary skill in the art" to understand how to make and use the invention after reading the application. So it is critical to have sufficient disclosure and proper pictures. Merely writing a paragraph and submitting it will likely not hold up in court.

The pros and cons of provisional versus a utility application really depends on your situation. Feel free to contact me.

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Answered on 4/26/06, 12:16 pm


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