Any recommendations on the purchase of docketing software?
I'm looking at the option of going solo. I'll be focusing on patent/TM prosecution, but might also want to practice in the areas of business formation, transactions and litigation. I notice that attorney malpractice insurance carriers are interested in whether the IP practitioner uses docketing software (obviously this software reduces risk of missing SOL, filing deadlines, etc.).
Are there pieces/brands of docketing software that are considered more "standard" than others (i.e., would be good to get used to in case I later join a medium or large-size firm)? Also, are there common alternatives to dedicated docketing software that satisfy most of the same functions (e.g., scheduling deadlines in MS Outlook)?
Any input would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.
One option to consider is a docketing service. I do recall Lyza Sandgren was doing it for a time, but I think she may be out of the business now. She posts here, mostly in copyright, so you should be able to find her there.
Contact me offline if you want to talk more. I am also a solo.
Hey Techlaw,
I work in a small instrumentation company, and we file a lot of our own patents. For years we had no docketing program, but finally we sprung for a FlexTrac Systems system. It's really, really low level, Access based and not great, but not that bad either. We were looking for something cheap, and I think this ran about $1,500, the next least expensive was in the $10,000 range.
Anyway I've been happy with it so far, but again my needs are modest - keeping track of due dates for a few dozen patents, trademarks and copyrights.
Good luck!
David
Hi,
Has anyone ever used any of the higher-end packages?
E.g.:
Anaqua
Thomson's IP Manager (I think this used to be called MTS)
Lecorpio
These are more portfolio management than docketing, but they do docketing as well.
I want to know if the price is justifiable over the pure docketing packages.
I'd like to pull this thread up because I'm dealing with the same question.
Interestingly (or strangely), there aren't many testimonials about the above portfolio management software packages on the forum.
I would like to add AppColl and IPfolio to the list.
What we need most of all in our company is:
- support for the international cooperation of our patent departments
- document management with full text search
- flexible interfacing to our existing IT systems in finance, sales and engineering
- the possibility to enter comments or, ideally, user-specific tags for each IP activity, or property right, respectively.
Thanks already everyone for opinions or hands-on experience.
I can +1 for IPfolio. One of our clients uses it and seems happy with it.
Thank you!
Looking forward to any further opinions on the above IP management packages.
Hi Techlaw-
Appcoll here.
We offer a free 30 day trial to allow users to see how the system works. We have plenty of information on our site and we are also the #1 rated Intellectual Property Management software on G2Crowd. Check us out!
I'd love to hear hands-on experience of people using systems like Unycom, Memotech or eFiLiA IP.
Thanks for pulling this thread up.
I'm looking for patent management software now. Mainly for a small law firm doing patent prosecution.
Any recommendation? How about Foundation IP?