Do I Need a Biotech Patent Lawyer? - Developing Biotech

Before you develop any biotech, you need a patent in place. The Patent Professor® can help you streamline this process and get you ahead of the competition.

Do I Need a Biotech Patent Lawyer When I Develop Biotechnology?

Let The Patent Professor® help you protect your unique biotechnology innovations—call (877) 330-7492 today.

When you make a new biotechnology discovery, a biotech patent lawyer ensures that your intellectual property stays protected. As scientists advance further in the biotech field, it becomes even more important to patent your biotech innovations.

When you create new biotech software or have ideas that can lead to advances in pharmaceuticals, biomedical, food processing, or any other life science niche, your first thought should be protecting them. Without a patent, you leave your ideas open to anyone who wants to use them.

The Patent Professor® works with you to keep your inventions exclusively yours. John Rizvi, Esq., is a Board-Certified attorney specializing in Patent Law. He can protect your work against patent infringement, so you know your work is safe.

What Is a Biotechnology Patent?

A biotechnology patent protects your discovery from theft by other companies or individuals. If you have a biotech patent, that means other scientists cannot use your identical methods to create a product or get a specific result.

The biotech industry is one of the most competitive in the world. It plays a significant role in the world economy, and many people do not realize how much biotechnology affects their daily lives. It touches everything from your breakfast table to the vaccines that prevent disease in our societies.

More research goes into biotech inventions than almost any other industry. Biotechnology companies invest a lot of revenue in their research, which means you want to protect yours.

Research is not always successful. Therefore, when it is, a patent makes sure you own the methods you used to make your discovery.

The Patent Professor® can help you understand what your biotech discovery requires in terms of what type of patent you need, the patent application process, and patent laws beyond approval.

What questions does a Patentability Analysis answer?

Your first step is knowing what you can patent before you start the patent application process. The patenting process is lengthy and complex, and not all research and discoveries can be protected in this way.

Biotech patents apply to:

Plants, specifically, fall under a unique form of patent law. Unlike a utility patent for any of the above, new or newly discovered plant species’ can be protected through a plant patent. Plant patents only last 14 years, compared to 20 for a utility patent in the biotech field.

Standards for Biotech Patents

The standards for biotech patents are stricter than other types of patents. Because of the research and development needed to create new products in the biotech industry, you must be able to prove that your creation is unique to you.

For example, in the case of biological materials, a patent examiner may state that your invention would happen in nature, without human intervention or experimentation. You must be able to prove this is untrue if you hope to patent your invention.

Most biotechnology innovations fall under two categories:

The potential for patenting a product or process is broad and ranges anywhere from new methods for isolating peptides to genetically modifying plants and animals to microorganism composition.

Can DNA Be Patented?

In the United States, you cannot patent DNA or RNA, no matter how you created the sequence.

The US Supreme Court ruled in 2013 that because you are not creating something new in discovering a gene, DNA is not patentable. In other words, this ruling states that genes are created by nature, whether a scientist breeds different types of plants, modifies a genotype or phenotype, or creates a new genetic sequence in another type of living organism.

Before 2013, thousands of genes were patented. However, the Supreme Court’s ruling rendered these patents obsolete, thereby lifting any exclusive right to DNA. Previously, a gene patent meant that one company or organization alone could research specific genes, though that is no longer the case.

How Long Do Biotech Patents Last?

Biotechnology patents last for 20 years from the date of filing. That does not include the amount of time required to patent approval.

Typically, you can expect to wait up to three years before the US Patent and Trademark Office approves your patent application. Your patent application involves more than signing a piece of paper and sending it away for a stamp of approval.

During the patenting process, you will be assigned a patent examiner. The patent examiner works with you to determine whether you have a patentable invention, as well as how useful, unique, and innovative that invention is.

The Patent Professor® guides you through the patent application process. John Rizvi, Esq., will analyze your invention to determine its patent potential before you submit your application. Once you receive approval, he will help you protect your innovation against patent infringement and other legal challenges affecting your intellectual property.

Should You Patent Your Biotech Discovery?

If you have an innovative biotechnology discovery, patent it to protect your property, profits, and the reputation of your product. By retaining exclusive rights to your intellectual property, you ensure that you can research and continue to use your methods to innovate.

Often, patenting leads to more innovation. That means that if you patent your biotechnology software, for example, you can use that software to make greater strides in the biotech world and modify it in the future. You allow your technology to evolve so that you can further benefit the biotech field.

If you choose not to patent your biotech discovery, you risk another scientist patenting it instead. Once that happens, you can no longer use those processes or that product in your own research and development. You also cannot profit from it the way you would have if you chose to patent it yourself.

Understand the Difference Between Biotech Patents and Other Utility Patents

Before you even consider submitting a patent application, you must understand the difference between patent types. There are three kinds of patents:

Biotech patents fall under utility patents. Utility patents include processes, machines, and matter.

Any biotech innovation approved for a patent must also be original. That means it cannot have been used before in any biotechnology process, and it must offer a unique use. For example, if you create a new process to make yogurt using microorganisms and it enhances that yogurt’s benefits to the human body, you may be able to patent it.

Biotech patents pose unique challenges when it comes to utility patents. When you alter genetic material, the degree to which you have altered it can determine whether your invention is eligible for patenting.

Similarly, others in the world are constantly performing biotechnology research. Your patent must not restrict their ability to perform basic research or prevent them from collaborating to innovate as well.

Do You Need a Biotech Patent Attorney?

The patenting process does not stop once your invention has been approved for a patent. A biotech patent attorney not only helps you understand the patent application process, but also makes it more efficient.

The Patent Professor® ensures your invention is industrially applicable and protects you in cases of patent prosecution against your biotechnological inventions. His knowledge of patent law means that he can work with you to refine your application before you submit it, as well as protect your innovations for as long as your patent remains effective.

As a nationally recognized intellectual property lawyer, The Patent Professor® knows how important your invention is to you. He can walk you through the patenting process from start to finish, and he knows how to protect you in the case of patent infringement. He also helps you navigate inter partes reviews and post-grant reviews, which means your intellectual property stays yours.

In a field as competitive as biotechnology,

you need a biotech patent lawyer. Contact The Patent Professor® today at (877) 330-7492 to book your consultation and learn how we can help you protect your biotechnology innovation.