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It is critical to keep the
idea confidential until the patent is filed. Tell as few
people as possible, and have everyone sign a Confidentiality
Agreement (click to download a free copy of a
standard Confidentiality Agreement) before you tell them the idea. This
is not just important to prevent theft – it is also
important to prove to the courts that you have not
publicly disclosed the idea or offered the idea for sale
before you file your patent application. Have even
friends and family sign! See our Forms
page to download a free copy of a standard
confidentiality agreement.
If you have an engineer or other
prototyping expert help you in product development and/or manufacturing, it is critical to have the consultant
sign a Work
Agreement (click
to download a free copy of a standard Work Agreement). If a paid assistant/consultant
improves your invention, he or she may have to be listed
as a co-inventor on your patent. Even though you are
paying them for their work, they will get rights to the
invention as a co-inventor. A Work Agreement assigns
their potential patent rights to the inventor.
These protections are simple, they
cost nothing, and they will help lock in your secure
ownership of your invention. Take advantage of them!
If you
have any questions, please give me a call at
800-949-0255 (toll free), or send an
email to
eric@karich.net
Foreign
Patent Application >> |
