It's that time of year again...
Annual patent planning for your company/client(s) for next year.
Here are some key dates to track as you set your annual patent budget and help your team schedule their priorities:
Regular application 12-month filing due dates for your priority applications (e.g. provisionals) filed this year.
⇨ Not only PCTs and regular U.S. app filing due dates, but consider non-PCT countries too.
⇨ For China, consider whether to directly file a utility and utility model application.
Next year dates of your first-in-family patent publications (e.g., PCT publication dates).
⇨ Usually ~18 months from earliest priority filing in family.
⇨ Important due dates for filings new apps with related, but new concepts.
1 year post-publication dates for your publications from this year.
⇨ 1st patent family publications, technical publications,1st offers for sale/sales, etc.
⇨ Important due dates for filing new U.S. apps with more data, or related, but new concepts.
Next years national phase entry(s) (PCT) (30 or 31 month dates).
⇨ Important to consider countries and associated translation costs and lead-time.
Next year's planned technical presentations (e.g. at biomed meetings), new product launches*, and publications**.
⇨ Important dates to track, to have lead time to draft and file new patent apps.
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Post History:
12/10/23 posted (EJV)
This blog post is not legal advice and does not necessarily represent the viewpoint of any of the clients of Double Helix Law. Please seek the guidance of a registered and licensed patent attorney or patent agent for any patent-related questions you have. Please note, especially regarding statements made for jurisdictions outside the U.S., that the authors of this article are U.S. patent practitioners.
Footnotes:
* New product launches can give a heads-up to the patent team of a possible 1st offer for sale for a new product.
** Consider "publications" broadly within your R&D and regulatory teams (e.g., in biopharma even an update to a clinicaltrials.gov entry can be a publication see e.g., Celltrion, Inc. v. Chugai Seiyaku Kabushiki Kaisha, No. IPR2022-00578, Paper 78 (P.T.A.B. August 29, 2023)).
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