4 Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Share Your Patent Ideas With IP Protection

The IP protection attorneys at Emerson Thomson Bennett often encounter clients who are eager to share their patent ideas with others. Coming up with something new and useful is exciting, so it makes sense that you would want to share this invention or creative work with others. 

But, while this enthusiasm is understandable, it can be detrimental to your patent application process and its success overall. If you want to be assured you’re doing everything right to protect your patent, Emerson Thomson Bennett can help. We’ll explain the reasons why you should not share your patent ideas before securing a patent.

What Does Securing a Patent Do?

First and foremost, securing a patent provides legal protection for your invention. It gives you exclusive rights to make, use, license, and sell your invention for a certain period of time. This means that anyone who wants to use or replicate your invention must seek permission from you or face legal consequences.

The Consequences of Sharing Your Patent Ideas

#1. Lack of Protection of Your Patent Ideas

The purpose of obtaining a patent is to protect your intellectual property from being copied or used without your permission. When you share your patent ideas with others, you are at risk of unintentional disclosure. To obtain a patent, your invention must be non-obvious and novel. This means that it cannot be publicly disclosed or used before the patent application is filed. 

By sharing your ideas, you’re essentially giving them access to your intellectual property without any legal protection. This puts you at risk of losing the rights to your idea and could potentially harm the chances of your patent application being approved.

#2. Risk of Idea Theft

Sharing your patent ideas with others also puts you at risk of idea theft. Unfortunately, not everyone has good intentions and some may try to steal your idea for their own gain. This could lead to expensive legal battles and delays in obtaining a patent. 

By keeping your ideas confidential until they are protected by a patent, you are safeguarding yourself from potential theft and the costs of future legal problems.

#3. Jeopardizing Patentability

For an invention to be considered patentable, it must meet certain criteria, such as novelty and non-obviousness. If you share your patent ideas with others before securing a patent, it may jeopardize the novelty aspect of your invention. This is because sharing your idea publicly can be seen as a form of disclosure, which the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) will take to mean that you don’t actually want or need a patent.

#4. Maintaining Control

By keeping your patent ideas to yourself until a patent is secured, you maintain control over the development and commercialization of your invention. This allows you to carefully choose who to share your ideas with and under what circumstances. Once a patent is granted, you have legal protection and can confidently share your ideas without fear of losing control.

Contact the IP Protection Attorneys at Emerson Thomson Bennett For Help Protecting Your Patent Ideas

As IP protection attorneys, we highly advise against sharing your patent ideas before securing a patent. Doing so puts you at risk of losing the rights to your own idea, facing idea theft, and jeopardizing the patentability of your invention.

By keeping your ideas confidential until they are protected by a patent, you are giving yourself the best chance of success. Maintain control over your intellectual property. Don’t let someone else take it from you. It is always better to be on the side of caution when it comes to protecting your valuable ideas. If you have any questions or concerns about protecting your intellectual property, contact us at Emerson Thomson Bennett. We are here to help.