Re: no set cost?

Subject: Re: Re: no set cost?

Comments:
: : : : since there is not set cost to do a paten how do I know if I'm getting rip off or not? for a sample if half way down the line cost is aready $8000 and they said it may cost another $8000 before getting the paten. : : How do I protect my self? : : Mike : That's a difficult question. At one point, I had a FAQ about that, but I don't any more. I'll have to add that to my site. : A patent application is a combination technical document and legal document. Both aspects of a patent application depend upon the amount and complexity of material to be described by the attorney. As a result, most attorneys charge by the hour -- the only fair way to be compensated for a job which varies so dramatically in the amount of required work. : Most clients pick attorneys by picking the lowest hourly rate. Hourly rates are not good indicators of overall cost. My rate is now 4 times what it was when I started practicing law. But my bills are about half. In my 12 years of practice, I've become about 8 times more efficient. : One thing that some attorneys (including myself) do is agree to a fixed fee up front. I've written enough patents that I can fairly accurately predict what the cost will be (once I've received a thorough and complete disclosure of the invention). With a fixed fee, I risk that it might take me longer, and you risk that I might finish early. : One thing that really drives up the cost for an inventor (or any client) is changing of the client's mind or micro-managing the project. How many revisions have you marked up and sent back to the attorney? Did you ever tell him/her to change the application then later tell them to change it back or again? Do you ask that every instance of "which" be changed to "that" and every instance of "can" be changed to "may?" That sort of editing of meaningless details, especially more than once, can drive the price up dramatically. : If you really feel your bill is unreasonably high for what work is being done, you might speak to the state bar of the state in which the attorney practices. I hate to even mention that, because it's really unpleasant for the attorney and his bill might be entirely reasonable. It's impossible for me to say from my vantage point. : As a point of reference, it's not unusual for a typical patent application for a Silicon Valley technology company in the area of computer software to pay $20,000 per application. I've made fixed fee agreements for $10,000 per application in contracts that provided for a number of patent applications (they get easier if you write a number of them related to similar technology). I've written applications that cost more than $100,000 and as little as $700. My typical software, e-commerce, Internet patent applications run about $8,000-15,000. My "better mouse trap" applications typically run about $2,000-7,000. : Of course, your mileage may vary. : I hope this helps. If you have more questions, just ask. : Regards.

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