Find Lawyers in Georgia, United States for Patent Law
Practice Area Overview
A patent is a contract between an inventor and the government. The inventor provides a complete description of the invention to the public in an application for patent. This benefits the public by providing knowledge of the invention for use as a foundation for additional innovation. In return, if the invention is new (as compared to everything known to the public prior to the invention), a patent is issued. This patent gives the inventor a right to exclude others from making, using, offering for sale, or selling the patented invention throughout the United States, and from importing the invention into the United States, for the life of the patent, usually 20 years from filing.
Grant of a patent does NOT itself give an inventor a right to exploit the patented invention – it only gives the inventor a right to exclude others from practicing the invention. For example, if an inventor makes an improvement to a previously patented machine, and gets a patent, the inventor can prevent the owner of the original patent from using the improvement. However, the inventor may not be able to exploit the improvement itself, at least until the original patent expires, because such exploitation might infringe that original patent.
Title 35 of the United States Code (the “Patent Statutes”) set forth the standards and procedures for obtaining patents. Patents are granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), an agency of the Department of Commerce.
The following items are patentable under these statutes:
- Processes: new methods of doing something
- Machines: engines, machinery, instruments, gadgets, etc.
- Articles of manufacture: circuits, tools, structures made of metal, plastics, ceramics, etc.
- Compositions of matter: new pharmaceuticals, chemical compounds, naturally occurring substances when substantially purified, DNA sequences, biological materials, e.g. bacteria, viruses, proteins and protein fragments, monoclonal antibodies, epitopes, and vectors.
- Improvements in any of the above
- Living organisms: genetically altered plants and animals.
- Computer programs: alone and in conjunction with other equipment.
- Business methods: methods for doing business, but not those solely directed to patenting abstract ideas.
- Designs: ornamental aspects of articles of manufacture.
- Non-patentable items include: nebulous concepts or ideas, laws of nature (e.g., gravity), mathematical algorithms alone (but computer-implemented mathematical algorithms producing a concrete, useful, and tangible result are patentable subject matter), and purely mental processes.
A key element to effective patent protection is writing patent claims that define the invention as broadly as possible, but without overlapping prior art that could make the patent invalid. This is generally best done by someone with skill and experience in patent practice, so consulting with a patent attorney is a wise choice.
Dane Baltich understands the importance of strategically growing and managing international patent portfolios. He also guides his clients on the issues of licensing, infringement, validity, and enforceability of patents. With his expertise, Dane positions patent portfolios for monetization, downstream litigation, and other strategic purposes for both domestic and international clients. His vast experience includes drafting and prosecuting patent portfolios across a broad range of fields, incl...
Jason Cooper is a co-coordinator of the firm’s Intellectual Property Practice Area, with emphasis in mechanical, manufacturing and medical device technologies. Mr. Cooper manages patent portfolios of various domestic and international clients and helps monetize those portfolios. He counsels clients in avoiding the infringement of patents of others and opines with regard to infringement and/or validity of individual patents, or advises on strategy for avoiding the patent portfolios of ot...
Charlie Henn concentrates his practice in the area of intellectual property litigation, including cases involving trademarks, copyrights, patents and trade secrets. Mr. Henn is listed in the 2009 edition of Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business for Intellectual Property Litigation (Georgia) and Sports law (Nationwide). He was recognized in The Best Lawyers in America ® 2010 for Intellectual Property Law. LawyersUSA named Mr. Henn one of six "Lawyers of the Year" nationally for ...
With a background in mechanical engineering and industry experience with aerospace systems integration projects, Chris Lightner practices in Alston & Bird’s Intellectual Property – Mechanical Patents Team. Chris focuses his practice on patent solicitation and counseling, as well as on IP-driven due diligence efforts, licensing agreements, confidentiality considerations, and patent brokerage agreements. Chris prepares and prosecutes U.S. and foreign patent applications for wide...
Jason Rosenberg, a partner in the Atlanta office, is a member of the firm's Intellectual Property-Trademark & Copyright Group. Jason focuses his practice on trademark, copyright and advertising enforcement, litigation and counseling, as well as adversarial matters before the Trademark Trial & Appeal Board of the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office. Jason’s clients call upon his experience to help them protect some of the most famous brands in the world, and he has successfully re...
Areas of Concentration Negotiation of complex content agreements with record companies, music publishing companies, music publishing rights organizations, motion picture studios, television networks, and various independent content providers and aggregators, and related strategic counseling (including with respect to electronic sell-through, subscription, streaming, ad-supported, mobile and other cutting-edge business models) Negotiation of all varieties of agreements with musical composition...
Nadya Sand leverages her business and marketing background to counsel high-profile companies in trademark, copyright, domain name, social media and advertising matters. In addition to counseling and portfolio management, she litigates intellectual property cases in federal and state court and handles contested matters before the TTAB, the National Advertising Division of the BBB and domain name arbitrators. Nadya concentrates her practice on domestic and international trademark and copyright ...
David Stewart is head of the firm’s Trademark & Copyright Group. He concentrates his practice on trademark, copyright, trade secret and advertising litigation and counseling. Mr. Stewart is featured in the International Edition of Who’s Who Trademarks and Super Lawyers magazine. He is also listed in Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business and The Best Lawyers in America . Mr. Stewart received an A.B. degree in English literature from Wabash College in 1985, ...
Joshua Weeks acts as a true resource for his clients, litigating patent cases nationwide in district courts and before the ITC. His deep knowledge of the USPTO post-grant proceedings enhances his ability to challenge or defend the validity of an issued patent before the PTAB. Joshua focuses his practice on the enforcement of intellectual property rights, including patents, trade secrets, and other forms of intellectual property. Joshua represents clients in disputes from inception through app...
A proactive problem-solver, Lauren has significant experience defending her clients’ intellectual property rights in district court proceedings and in inter partes review (IPR) and post grant review proceedings before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on both the patentee and patent challenger side. With her excellent writing and critical thinking skills, Lauren has obtained preliminary injunctive relief for her clients in district court and defeated challenges to patent validity at ...
Micah Hensley focuses his practice on patent and trademark matters associated with intellectual property law. Micah counsels clients on legal issues including freedom to operate, patentability, and licensing. Working closely with his team, he advises on strategic patent portfolio management and works with patent agents preparing and prosecuting patent applications. In addition, Micah has experience with IP litigation, preparing briefs and memoranda for district court and USPTO post-grant proc...
Ashley Klein focuses her practice on trademark matters and intellectual property litigation. She routinely assists clients with identifying, protecting, and enforcing their U.S. and international intellectual property rights. Ashley has experience handling intellectual property disputes, particularly trademark infringement claims and Uniform Domain Name Dispute-Resolution Policy (UDRP) claims. Ashley regularly represents trademark owners in opposition and cancellation proceedings before the T...
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