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Anyone who invents a new process, machine, manufacture or composition of matter, whether entirely new or an improvement on a prior invention, or who designs an article with an original, ornamental appearance, may pursue a patent or an industrial design registration to protect that invention or design. While it may be possible for an inventor to persuade a Patent Office Examiner to allow some sort of patent without expert help, the drafting of patent claims and the application for a patent, in general, are complex processes that are difficult to accomplish effectively without considerable experience in prosecuting patents before the Patent Office. Please contact us to receive our free booklet entitled “Patents: Protecting Your Inventions” to learn more about the patent application process in general, and to learn how we can be of assistance to you in obtaining patent protection on your invention.
Before applying for a patent, it is important to conduct a thorough search of existing commercial products and prior patents. The intent behind a preliminary search is to see whether the patentability of the invention can be easily ruled out, thus saving the inventor the further effort and more significant expense of filing a patent application in one or more countries, only later to have the Patent Office reject the patent application on the basis of prior art that could have been located in such a preliminary search. While it is advisable to involve the services of a Patent Agent when conducting a preliminary search due to their familiarity with the appropriate search resources and their operation, there exists many publicly-accessible databases that are available free of charge and may be searched initially by the inventor before contacting a Patent Agent. Some publicly-accessible databases for conducting your own patent search include Google Patents, the United States Patent and Trademark Office, and the Canadian Intellectual Property Office. Please contact us if you would like to receive any guidance on conducting your own patent search, or to arrange a preliminary consultation to help assess whether any distinctive features of the invention may still be patentable over the references located in your own search.
Stage | Step | Professional Fees | Official Fees |
---|---|---|---|
1) Initial Research | Patentability Search and/or Opinion | $350 to $700 | |
2) File first application | 2A) Prepare and file Provisional Application; or | $1500 to $3500 | Canada: $200 to $400 CAD USA: $70 to $280 USD |
2B) Prepare and file Complete Application in first country with no earlier Provisional application. | $2000 to $5000 | Canada: $200 to $1200 CAD USA: $430 to $1720 USD | |
3) File second application | 3A) Prepare and file Complete Application in first country based on prior Provisional application; and/or | $750 to $1500 | Canada: $200 to $1200 CAD USA: $430 to $1720 USD |
3B) Prepare and file Complete Application in second country based on prior application. | $750 to $1500 | Canada: $200 to $1200 CAD USA: $430 to $1720 USD | |
4) Examination | 4A) Responding to Examiner objections on issues of formality | $300 to $1000 | |
4B) Responding to Examiner objections on issues of substance (novelty, inventiveness, utility) | $1000 to $2000 | Canada: $0 USA (First time): $0USA (Second time): $325 to 1300 USD |