Welcome

Welcome to the intellectual property blog for West & Associates. As experts working on the cutting edge of legal matters we will work diligently to provide the most current information available about Patent, Trademark and Copyright Licensing, Procurment (Prosecution) and Litigation. Additional information can always be accessed directly on the United States Patent & Trademark Office website (www.uspto.gov), the U.S. Copyright Office website (www.copyright.gov) or the website for West & Associates (www.westpatentlaw.com).



Thursday, September 8, 2011

Patent "Reform" is Almost Law

In an 89 to 9 vote earlier today, Senate passed the America Invents Act which drastically changes the US patent system.  The only remaining hurdle to enactment of the law is the signature of President Obama, who has indicated that he favors signing the bill into law.

The most significant impact of this bill will be the modification of our current first-to-invent system to a new first-to-file system.  Under the new law, it may be a race to the patent office as the first inventor to file the patent application will be entitled to receive the patent for an invention.  While this may seem harsh, it is very much in-line with the laws of almost all other countries in the world.