by evansfox | Feb 14, 2013
Under the Headstart accelerated examination system (AU$540 official fees), IP Australia will issue a confidential assessment within 5 working days as to whether or not the mark will encounter any official objections, including any potential cited prior trademarks. If...
by evansfox | Feb 13, 2013
More than half of provisional patent applications are abandoned without ever reaching the non-provisional application stage. Thus, the protection lasts for only 12 months. Provisional applications are seen as a low-cost way to claim a priority date and to delay the...
by evansfox | Feb 12, 2013
The USPTO will evaluate in 2013 whether the US should develop a small claims proceeding for lower-value patent enforcement actions. In the US, all patent infringement cases are heard in Federal District court and the costs of litigation are well known to be six...
by evansfox | Feb 7, 2013
Deciding Between Design Patent and Trade Dress Design patents have a 14 year lifespan under patent law. Trade dress is a form of trademark protection and can last as long as the owner continues to use the trade dress. Thus, trade dress protection can extend for...
by evansfox | Feb 5, 2013
If you qualify as a microentity, many people are advising that inventors may consider filing a provisional application before March 18 and delay your non-provisional filing until after March 19. This could save you more than $133 in basic filing fees, but the cost of...
by evansfox | Feb 5, 2013
The Irish Times Science editor Dick Ahlstrom believes that the world may never see another scientific genius like Galeo, Einstein or Newton – people whose discoveries and theories created entirely new fields of learning. Rather, the technology of today and tomorrow...