Brooklyn Patent Attorney

Whether you are developing a new product, refining a manufacturing process, or preparing to launch a startup, protecting your innovation can feel overwhelming without a clear understanding of the patent process.

A Brooklyn patent attorney helps you evaluate whether your invention may qualify for patent protection, prepare a patent application, respond to United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) examination, and manage your patent after you receive it. For inventors and startup founders in Brooklyn, patent counsel connects the legal requirements for patent protection to the technical and business goals behind the invention. 

Jones IP Law’s Brooklyn patent attorney helps inventors, entrepreneurs, startups, and growing businesses protect their intellectual property. I regularly work with entrepreneurs developing products in our city’s unique innovation hubs, such as DUMBO, the Brooklyn Navy Yard, Industry City, and other parts of Brooklyn’s growing technology and manufacturing community.

Led by Michael Jones, the firm brings extensive technological, patent prosecution, trademark, and litigation experience. I am here to help with all aspects of the patent process. 

What Does a Brooklyn Patent Attorney Do?

A patent attorney helps inventors, entrepreneurs, and businesses obtain and protect patents. I guide clients through the patent process, including:

• Evaluating whether an invention qualifies for patent protection,
• Investigating similar patents,
• Drafting patent applications and claims,
• Communicating with the USPTO during patent examination, and
• Advising clients on ongoing patent issues.

A Brooklyn patent attorney brings familiarity with the area and the unique challenges you might face when patenting an invention in NYC.

How Do You Begin a Patent Application in Brooklyn? Evaluating Patentability

When you meet with your patent attorney in Brooklyn, NY, I begin by evaluating whether the invention qualifies for patent protection. A patent is an intellectual property right that allows you to exclude others from making, using, selling, offering to sell, or importing the patented invention. 

Federal patent law allows you to apply for several types of patents:

• Utility—machines, manufacturing processes, articles of manufacture, compositions of matter, and improvements to existing inventions;
• Design—ornamental appearance of a product; and
• Plant—new varieties of plants.

Your attorney helps you determine which, if any, of these categories your invention falls under.

Most inventions fall under the first category of utility patents. 

To receive a utility patent, an invention must be:

• Patentable subject matter—fits into a patent category, such as a process, machine, manufacture, composition of matter, or qualifying design or plant invention;
• Useful—has a specific, practical utility; 
• Novel—new relative to existing inventions; and
• Non-obvious—not a foreseeable improvement to existing technology.

To receive a design patent, a design generally must be:

• Applied to an article of manufacture—as related to the appearance of a product;
• Ornamental—protects how the product looks, not how it works; 
• Novel—new relative to existing designs; and
• Non-obvious—not an obvious variation of existing designs.

To receive a plant patent, a plant variety generally must be:

• Qualifying Plant Variety—falls within the categories eligible for plant patent protection;
• New and distinct—different from known plant varieties; and
• Asexually reproduced—reproduced other than by seed, such as by grafting, cutting, or tissue culture.

Your attorney helps translate legal patentability requirements to your invention so you know how to approach your patent application and what to expect during your patent application in Brooklyn.

Your attorney also helps you determine whether to begin with a provisional patent application or proceed directly with a non-provisional patent application, depending on the stage of development, available technical details, timing, budget, and business goals. 

How Do We Verify an Invention Is Novel and Non-Obvious? Comparing the Invention to Prior Art

Next, your attorney compares the invention to existing technology through a prior art search. Prior art is a legal term referring to information that inventors, companies, researchers, and the public have already disclosed before you apply for a patent. It may include:

• Patents, 
• Published patent applications, 
• Technical publications, 
• Products, 
• Public uses, 
• Sales activity, and 
• Other publicly available information.

Timing also matters. Public disclosures, sales activity, product launches, investor presentations, or other disclosures before filing may affect patent rights, especially when international protection may be important.

Brooklyn inventors often operate at the intersection of technology, manufacturing, design, and creative industries. Your Brooklyn patent attorney completes a thorough review of potential prior art. I identify features to distinguish your invention from prior technology and help determine how to position those features in your patent application. A prior art search greatly helps assess risk and guide drafting strategy, but it cannot guarantee that the USPTO will allow a patent or that no relevant prior art exists.

How Do You Apply for a Patent? Preparing and Filing Your Application

Your Brooklyn patent lawyer then prepares your patent application. A patent application includes:

• A specification—describes the invention and explains how to make and use it;
• Claims—define the invention the applicant asks the USPTO to protect, identifying the parts, features, steps, or components that make up the invention; and
• Drawings—illustrate the invention and help explain the written description and claims, when helpful.

I prepare the application on your behalf by:

• Gathering technical information about the invention,
• Drafting the written description of how the invention works and what makes it unique,
• Carefully defining your patent claims,
• Coordinating drawings included in the application, and
• Filing the application with the USPTO.

In short, your attorney handles the paperwork and submits it to the USPTO, beginning the process of patent prosecution.

What Happens After You File a Patent Application? Responding to USPTO Examination

After you file, the USPTO assigns the application to a patent examiner who reviews the application for compliance with federal patent law and USPTO rules. During that review, the examiner may issue an Office Action, a written notice explaining any questions or concerns they have about the application. 

When the USPTO issues an Office Action, your attorney reviews the examiner’s concerns and prepares a response. Depending on the circumstances, I may:

• Explain why the invention differs from existing technology,
• Revise the claims,
• Clarify the application, or
• Provide additional legal or technical support for patentability.

The USPTO and the applicant often exchange multiple rounds of correspondence before the examiner reaches a final decision. Throughout that process, I continue advocating for patent protection that reflects the invention and your business goals.

What Happens After the USPTO Grants a Patent? Maintaining Patent Rights

If the USPTO approves the application, it issues a notice of allowance which gives you a few months to pay the issue fee.  After the fee is paid and paperwork is filed, the USPTO issues the patent and you become a patent holder.  

Before a patent issues, however, your attorney may also evaluate whether pending applications support continuation applications, divisional applications, or other related filings. Those decisions need to be made while an application is still pending, before the USPTO issues the patent. 

Once your patent is issued, you gain the right to exclude others from your invention.

Patent ownership also involves ongoing maintenance, including:

• Paying the required maintenance fees if you hold a utility patent,
• Monitoring the marketplace for products or processes that may infringe the patent,
• Reviewing licensing opportunities that may allow others to use the patented invention, 
• Maintaining records related to the patented invention, and
• Reviewing the patent’s role in the business as conditions evolve.

Your patent attorney helps you maintain your patent and keep up with your patent obligations. After your patent issues, I can help you:

• Track maintenance-fee deadlines,
• Evaluate potential infringement concerns,
• Review licensing opportunities,
• Assess whether improvements to the invention warrant additional patent applications, and
• Coordinate patent protection with other intellectual property rights.

An issued patent can remain valuable for many years, but maintaining that value often requires ongoing legal and business decisions. I help clients protect, manage, and build upon their patent rights as their inventions, products, and businesses continue to develop.

Work with Our Patent Law Firm 

A patent application requires legal analysis, technical understanding, and careful drafting. A Brooklyn patent attorney from Jones IP Law can help you evaluate patentability, analyze prior art, choose the right filing path, prepare the application, respond to USPTO examination, and manage issued patent rights. 

At Jones IP Law, I combine technological knowledge with practical IP legal guidance. If you need the services of a patent law firm, contact us today.

Legal References Used to Inform This Page 

To ensure the accuracy and clarity of this page, we referenced official legal resources during the content development process:

• USPTO, Managing a Patent. 
• USPTO, Patent Essentials.