Just Do It
Putting off applying for that patent? You may regret it later.
By Don Debelak •
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
A 1999 Supreme Court ruling (Pfaff v. Wells Electronics Inc.) isexpected to have a huge impact on how quickly inventors apply for apatent. In this case, inventor Wayne E. Pfaff's patent wasdeclared invalid because the product had been on sale more than oneyear before Pfaff applied for his patent.
U.S. patent law allows an inventor one year to file for a patentafter the product is placed on sale or publicly used in the UnitedStates or described in a printed publication. However, confusionhas stemmed from the definition of "one year": Someinventors have taken this to mean that they can research theirinvention in the market before deciding whether to patent theidea.
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