Patent Lawyer Sacramento, CA

 If you’re looking for a patent lawyer in Sacramento, CA, you need to look no further than Sierra IP Law. Sierra Law describes itself as an “Intellectual Property Boutique (law firm) providing quality IP service including patents, trademarks, copyrights, licensing, and litigation” services.

 What, exactly, is a patent?

 A patent is a subset of Intellectual Property (IP) law. The most commonly understood definition, is that the owner or creator of an invention is given exclusive rights by the U.S. Government allowing the patent holder to exclude others from making, using, or selling the invention without express permission from the owner.

 There are three types of patents.

• Utility patents which cover the functional parts of an invention. Think of the parts that make a tool work.
• Design patents which cover the look and feel of the invention.
• Plant patents which is a person or a corporation that invents or discovers a unique form of plant.

 Sierra Law has years of experience in all three areas, and is also experienced in off shore or patents in many foreign countries.

 What is a patent attorney?

 As you might expect a patent attorney is a lawyer who knows patent law, which as you see can become quite complicated. A major skill of the attorneys at Sierra Law has deep experience with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office; this is the organization that can issue you a patent on your invention. Sierra Law knows what is required to secure a patent, as well as what to expect and how to work with the Patent Examiners, the individuals who will look closely at your documentation. They  determine if you have met the qualifications for a patent or not.

Protecting Your Intellectual Property with Sierra IP Law, PC

Intellectual property is the heart and soul of your company, and a patent lawyer Sacramento, CA trusts can help you safeguard your company and your IP from theft and blatant copyright violations.

The professionals at Sierra IP Law, PC are standing by to help you protect your IP, and we’re ready to provide some much-needed information so you know how to keep your business safe. Read on to understand more about how you can prevent IP theft, and get in touch with us today to see what we can do for you.

But First: What Qualifies as Intellectual Property?

If you want to take steps to protect your intellectual property, you need to know what counts as intellectual property in the first place. Intellectual property (IP) covers a broad range of company secrets, but it also includes designs and creative expressions.

Secret recipes, custom designs, and groundbreaking new technologies can all qualify as intellectual property, and in the cutthroat world of business, it’s no surprise that IP theft happens frequently. The consequences of IP theft can range from the loss of sales to the loss of your entire business. After all, a rival company producing a clone of your product while undercutting your prices can lead to major hurdles for your own company’s growth.

How Can I Protect My IP?

Intellectual property theft happens all the time, but thankfully there are important steps you can take to safeguard those trade secrets. One of the most important steps is recognizing what data is most important, so you can keep it under lock and key. In our increasingly information-heavy world, it can be difficult to lose sight of what data matters most, and that makes it difficult to recognize what takes precedence in the world of security.

Additionally, you can control who has access to your IP within your company. You may not like to hear it, but a huge amount of IP theft actually comes from within businesses who are trying to keep their trade secrets safe. For various reasons, employees (or former employees) may leak your sensitive information to the public - or to your rivals. It’s important to control your IP within your company, and only reveal your secrets to a trusted few.

However, there is a first step that some people forget when it comes to preventing intellectual property theft. You need to claim the IP as yours in the first place. If you don’t get in touch with a Sacramento patent lawyer to secure your claim to your IP, you won’t have any legal options if someone steals your trade secrets or designs.

It seems like a no-brainer, but many people have been caught completely off-guard by rampant plagiarism and copycats. The more steps you take to claim an idea as your own, the better your odds are if you need to take an offending party to court.

Contact Sierra IP Law Today

At Sierra IP Law, we understand how important your intellectual property is to you and your company. It’s important to take every step necessary to safeguard your IP, and we’re ready to help you manage and protect your IP from rivals, employees, and everyone in between.

Get in touch with us today for a free consultation, and see how a Sacramento patent lawyer from our office can keep your IP safe.

Sierra Law also has experience with developing patents in foreign countries. Again, that understanding means if you want help in this area with your invention you want to talk with Sierra Law.

Finally, Sierra Law is more than capable of helping you defend your patent and/or any business disputes around your patent should that become necessary.

 Knowledge of how the U.S. Patent Office actually works

 Not only are the lawyers at Sierra Law experts in patent law, they understand how the U.S. Patent Office actually works. They have, as it were, an insider’s understanding of the people and processes there because they work with them so often. You’ll benefit from this kind of ‘local knowledge’ and you definitely want an attorney how has this type of experience.

What services Sierra Law actually offers

Sierra Law offers everything you need to file for a patent and/or to defend one. Their services fall into the following five categories:

Assessment – They take a close look at your unique situation regarding new patents, existing patents including trademark searching, assessing infringement options and more.

Procurement/Prosecution – You’ll get the help you need with document generation including question answering, description writing, as well as understanding how patents work overseas, evaluation of technology, etc.

Maintenance – Sierra Law will help keep track of your intellectual property portfolio, as well as help you stay on top of things like renewal dates, changes in law that impact you, and more.

Licensing/Transactions – They will perform much of the due diligence needed as well as trademarks, licensing agreements and buy and sell options regarding your patent.

 Litigation – Although their legal expertise is designed to help avoid litigation, it does happen. They are expert in enforcing patents and defending you in state and federal courts should the need arise.

When you’re looking for a patent lawyer in Sacramento, CA, look no further than Sierra Law, your intellectual property specialists.

Common Myths About Patents

If you want to patent a new product, it is important to work with a patent lawyer Sacramento, CA residents trust. An experienced lawyer can guide through the process of obtaining a patent and help you avoid costly mistakes. There are actually many misunderstandings about patents. Here are some common myths about patents that you should not believe.

• If I have a U.S. patent, I have patent rights globally. If you patent an invention in the U.S., it will only be enforceable in that country. If you want your patent to be enforceable in other countries, you will have to apply for a patent in every one of those countries. If you find out that a competitor is making a version of your product in another country, you can take legal action to keep those products from coming to the U.S.

• Ideas can be patented. This is wishful thinking by some inventors. The truth is that it is not possible to patent just an idea. In order to obtain a patent, the technology must be built or could readily be built by someone who knows the technology.

• If I don’t have competitors, a patent isn’t necessary. Just because you don’t think you have competitors now, does not mean you won’t in the future. After your hit product hits the marketplace, others may try to copy and profit from your product. That is why it is in your best interest to obtain a patent as soon as possible. An experienced Sacramento patent lawyer can help you with this.

• The patent office will make sure that no one infringes my patent. While this would be nice, it isn’t realistic. The patent office’s only duty is to determine if a patent should be granted or not. After you receive a patent, it’s up to you to enforce your rights.

• A patent will automatically help me get rich. This is another common misconception that inventors believe. A patent will only prevent your invention from getting stolen by other people. You still have to create a business plan for your product.

• A big corporation will just steal my invention anyway. Some people do not bother with getting a patent because they assume a big corporation will eventually steal their invention anyway. However, you must remember that an invention protected by a patent will deter most people from trying to steal it.

• Conducting a patentability search is simple. While it is possible to access a patent database online, it is not such an easy process. It involves many complexities, so the average person may have difficulty with it. That is why you may want to find an expert to help you with the process.

• The drawings in a patent show what’s protected. The drawings typically do not state what is protected in a patent. As a Sacramento patent lawyer can confirm, the written claims actually state what is covered by the patent.

Get in touch with us today for a free consultation, and see how a lawyer from Sierra IP Law, PC can keep your IP safe.