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I made sketches and wrote a description of a basic invention that I have been thinking about for a long time. I notarized the papers and then I mailed it to myself. Am I ok now? I am going to start marketing my idea.
5 ANSWERS
Intellectual Property Attorney serving South Jordan, UT
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Pearson Butler
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You are not protected at all. People call that the "poor man's patent" or the "poor man's copyright" and it is useless.
Answered on May 21st, 2015 at 5:42 AM
Absolutely no protection is obtained by mailing a copy of your work to yourself. All that mailing will do is provide evidence of a date upon which you were working on your idea. Protection for an invention comes from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office when it grants an inventor a patent on his/her invention. Your sketches and narration themselves may be protected by copyright law but that will not protect your idea. You can market your invention at any time without patent protection but you won't be able to prevent others from copying your idea.
Answered on May 20th, 2015 at 2:02 PM
Appellate Litigation Attorney serving Boston, MA
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Banner & Witcoff, Ltd.
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You have NO protection for your idea. If you want protection you must file a patent application in the US Patent and Trademark Office - www.uspto.gov and obtain a patent. Otherwise, you could try to keep your invention secret (a trade secret) - but once made public - the secret is likely gone. The Coca Cola formula is a famous trade secret - as it has not yet been exactly reproduced by competitors. Once you put your invention in the public arena (sale, offer for sale, etc.) you have only one year to file a patent application. Also - another person could see your invention, modify it some, and file a patent application on that version - which under current US Law could block your later filed application from being granted a patent. GOOD LUCK!
Answered on May 20th, 2015 at 1:55 PM
Sorry, first to invent has been gone for several years. If your invention has enough value to be worth it, you would be well advised to find a patent attorney.
Answered on May 20th, 2015 at 1:44 PM
Intellectual Property Attorney serving Southfield, MI
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Gerald R. Black
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The U.S. was the only country in the world to award patent rights to the first one to invent when there were two inventors who made the same invention. All other countries award the patent grant to the first one to file the Patent Application. In March 2013, the U.S. changed its laws to award patent rights to the first to file the Patent Application. This amounts to a race to file. Under your statement of facts you are not protected and you need to obtain patent rights.
Answered on May 20th, 2015 at 1:41 PM