LAWS 800 Patent Prosecution
The course is targeted at teaching the fundamental knowledge and skills required for preparing patent applications for filing at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) and pursuing them to issuance. The patent practitioner must be prepared to interview the inventor, learn the technology, and prepare the patent application. Further, the patent practitioner negotiates with the examiner and prosecutes the application. Clients expect the practitioner to provide useful counsel on how to pursue the application, options for appealing or otherwise overcoming adverse decisions, and protecting the technology from domestic and foreign competition. The course is designed to train the patent practitioner to understand the patent options for various technologies, clients, and situations. Students learn the basics of drafting patent applications, pursuing the patent application through the PTO process, meeting adverse decisions from the PTO, and maintaining the issued patent. The course also addresses anticipating litigation issues, protecting developing technologies, and pursuing patents abroad. Evaluation will principally be by a series of drafting assignments in a semester-long writing project, without a final examination.