Denver Patent Lawyer Answers: Can a patent attorney guarantee that I receive a patent for my invention?

Can a patent attorney guarantee that I receive a patent for my invention?

Callers often ask patent attorney Mark Trenner if he can guarantee his work. Can patent attorney Mark Trenner guarantee that he can get the Patent Office to guarantee that a patent will issue for their invention. And if the Patent Office won’t issue a patent for their invention, can the inventor get a refund?

No. Mark Trenner’s Colorado-based patent law firm does NOT offer any guarantees or warrantees that the Patent Office will issue a patent for an inventor’s invention. In fact, as an attorney registered with the Colorado state bar, Mark Trenner and his patent law firm is prohibited by attorney regulation from offering any client, any guarantee or warrantee as to outcome or result of a particular matter.

The reason Colorado attorneys (and perhaps patent attorneys in other states) are unable to offer any guarantees or warrantees is that the outcome or result depends on a wide variety of factors. Most of these circumstances are out of the control of the patent attorney. For example, the Patent Office may refuse to issue a patent for an invention if the Examiner finds prior art that anticipates the invention or renders the invention obvious. Or the Inventor may decide not to pursue an invention any further once a patent application has been filed with the Patent Office.

Nor does Trenner Law Firm offer any refunds for work that has already been completed. Refunds for work that has already been performed may be considered a guarantee or warrantee, which as noted above is prohibited by the attorney regulations.

Where can I find a patent attorney for free?

Where can I find a patent attorney for free?

Callers often ask Denver patent attorney Mark Trenner where they can find a patent attorney for free. Typically what the caller means is if the patent attorney is willing to take the case on a contingency basis, just like the auto-accident attorneys.

Auto-accident attorneys often take new cases on a contingency fee basis for three reasons. First, the clients oftentimes have little or no money to hire an attorney. Second, there is a good chance that the insurance company will settle and the attorney will collect a portion of the settlement amount without having even had to go to court. And third, even if the insurance company does not settle and the attorney has to take the case to court, in the event that the attorney wins the case for their client, the verdict will likely be such a large sum (think hundreds of thousands of dollars, or even millions of dollars), that the attorney will make a handsome profit.

Unfortunately, this model does not apply well to patent law. That is, while many inventors think that their idea is the next big thing – a million dollar idea – there are so many variables at play that it may take years to make even a modest profit, and in some cases the inventor even gives up or doesn’t pursue the invention, and so the invention never makes any money.

You can, however, find a patent attorney that works on a flat fee basis. Denver patent law firm Trenner Law Firm, LLC handles most patent matters on a flat fee basis so that clients of Trenner Law Firm are always aware of the total costs for a project up front, before they authorize any work to begin. Contact Colorado Patent Attorney Mark Trenner at [email protected] for more information.