The USPTO applauds the efforts of those in the private sector who are bringing their expertise to bear on behalf of America’s entrepreneurs, by empowering inventors with the information, tools, and resources needed to better navigate the ever-evolving IP terrain. Their contributions serve as a keen reminder that, by working together, we can build an ever stronger intellectual property system. This page contains links to external websites that offer certain services free of charge and/or with site registration that may assist persons faced with demand letters or infringement suits. The USPTO is providing these links for information purposes, in order to assist the public in locating free resources that may be helpful to them.
- Related Suits
Information about whether a patent has been the subject of a lawsuit can be helpful to someone who has received a complaint or a demand letter, including helping them identify other parties who might have faced similar issues and providing information about the outcomes of other lawsuits involving the patent.
Docket Navigator (offers information about related cases, companies, outcomes, claim terms)
Lex Machina (offers information about related cases, including cases brought by the same companies and law firms)
MaxVal (offers information about the number of related cases)
Patexia (offers information about patents, lawsuits and statistics)
RPXCorp (offers metrics and analytics about the market & legal activity of a patent to inform IP strategies) - Related Letters
Information about demand letters that other people and companies have received may be helpful to identify other parties who might have faced similar issues and to provide information about how patents raised in material you have received are being asserted elsewhere.
Stand Up To The Demand (offers users a video and examples of demand letters)
Trolling Effects (offers a searchable database of letters and FAQs on demand letters) - More about the Patents, (e.g., Owners, Related Patent, Administrative and District Court Litigation History and Counsel)
In order to determine how best to proceed after receiving a demand letter or after having been sued for infringing a patent, it is useful to determine as much information as possible about the patent. For example, information about other people and companies who have dealt with the patent and patent owner may be useful to identify how other parties and/or attorneys who might have faced similar issues resolved them. Information about market activity of patents can help provide information about how patents raised in materials you have received are used in commerce. Information about legal proceedings involving patents, including proceedings before the USPTO, can be useful in determining how to respond to a demand or infringement suit.
AskPatents (offers crowdsourced Q&A about patents, including prior art for specific patents)
Docket Alarm (offers information on Covered Business Method actions and Inter Partes Review)
Google Patents (offers information about patents and applications flexibly searchable by country, type of patent, timeframe)
Lex Machina (offers information about the company, patents, and law firms behind the demand)
Twin Dolphin Software (offers information about challenges to the patent at the USPTO, the patent portfolio of the registered owner, and the history of the patent’s transactions)
Patexia (offers information about patents, lawsuits and statistics)
RPXCorp (offers metrics and analytics about the market & legal activity of a patent to inform IP strategies) - Additional Legal Resources
Patent infringement can present complex legal issues, and information about legal aid, legal background, cases, statutes, and regulations can be helpful in determining how to respond to a demand or infringement suit. There are free resources online that can provide the public information about legal issues related to patents and legal services, including how to seek the services of an attorney. The USPTO does not provide legal advice to the public, and these links do not constitute legal advice.
Electronic Frontier Foundation (legal services and referrals, through a “Cooperating Attorney” list)
Fast Case (trial subscription. Service offers links to legal cases, statutes, regulations, court rules, and constitutions)
Justia (online legal research tool offering links to cases, law and regulations)
Legal Information Institute (free online legal research tool offering links to federal, state, and international law, regulations, and procedural rules, as well as other legal information)
Practical Law (online legal research tool offering links to cases, law and regulations) - Law School Clinics
As stated above in the “Additional Legal Resources” section, additional information about legal aid, legal background, cases, statutes, and regulations can be helpful in determining how to respond to a demand or infringement suit. Some law school clinical programs offer free or reduced cost services that can provide the public information about legal issues related to patents and legal services, including how to seek the assistance of an attorney. The USPTO does not provide legal advice to the public, and these links do not constitute legal advice.
American University Washington College of Law: Glushko-Samuelson Intellectual Property Clinic
(Advises and represents small inventors and entrepreneurs, and others who otherwise would not have access to high-quality intellectual property law services)
Brooklyn Law School: Brooklyn Law Incubator and Policy “BLIP” Clinic
(Represents emerging tech, Internet, communications, and new media companies before U.S. agencies and may provide litigation services.)
John Marshall Law School: Patent Law Clinic
(Represents inventors before U.S. agencies and may provide some litigation services)
New York University School of Law: Technology Law & Policy Clinic
(Advises clients on intellectual property law issues)
University of Southern California Gould School of Law: USC Intellectual Property and Technology Law Clinic
(Advises and represents entrepreneurs, non-profits and others on intellectual property law issues)
University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law: New Ventures Clinic
(Advises and represents entrepreneurs, non-profits and others on intellectual property law issues)
Providing links to these resources does not constitute legal advice. Use of the listed resources should not be considered to replace advice from an attorney, since selection of any one course of action may keep you from exercising some of your rights. A link to the website of any specific organizations, attorneys, law firms, or corporations, does not constitute endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the USPTO. Please note that some links may lead to information providers who charge a fee for some of their services.
The USPTO reserves the right to remove any link, add to the listing of resources, or make changes to the listing of resources at any time without notice.
The USPTO has no obligation to monitor these links, but may do so and may take reasonable steps to satisfy laws, regulations, or governmental or legal requests, or to protect itself and its users. Any links to websites considered by USPTO to be inappropriate may be deleted at the discretion of the USPTO.
Government Resources:
- Federal Court Filings (PACER is the official system for federal court records)
- Federal Judicial Center Patent Video (Informative video on the patent system)
- Federal Trade Commission (Federal agency that protects consumers)
- Inter partes dispute (A type of USPTO proceeding for challenging a patent)
- Inventor Resources (Listing of USPTO resources for inventors)
- Patent and Trademark Resource Centers (Nationwide network of public, state and academic libraries that are designated by the USPTO to disseminate patent and trademark information)
- Patent Attorney database (Listing of patent attorneys throughout the country)
- Patent Document Search (Information on how to obtain copies of US patents)
- Patent Ownership / Assignment (Database of registered patent owners)
- Helpful hints on how to search the assignment database (Tips on how the search the patent owner database)
- Patent Term Calculator (Web-based tool for calculating patent end date)
- Pre-issuance submissions (USPTO Procedure for submitting information during the pendency of a patent application)
- Reexamination (A type of USPTO proceeding for challenging a patent)
- State Resources (Listing of patent resources available state by state)
- U.S. Patent Search Facilities (Description of services offered at USPTO Headquarters and throughout the country)
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