Patents generally protect products or processes, which include new technical or functional aspects.

They protect the ideas behind how things work.

If a new product or process yields one or more advantages over known products and processes, then there is a reasonable likelihood that it is patentable, provided that it has not been publicly disclosed.

Protection afforded by patents is territorial, for example, a British patent only gives the patentee a monopoly in the UK.

It is possible to file a patent application in the UK, and subsequently to file corresponding patent applications in foreign countries up to a year later.

To read more about the importance of patent protection to your business, please click here

The UK is our home territory and we draft and file British patent applications at the UK Patent Office in Newport or London.

The UK Patent Office search is performed quickly and is relatively inexpensive. This can be particularly helpful for small businesses and lone inventors.

For more information on British patent procedure and costs, please click here.

We are able to draft and file European Patents under the European Patent Convention (EPC). When granted, a European patent gives protection in the European designated states chosen by the applicant. This is an effective way of obtaining protection for an invention in a number of European States.

For more information on European patent procedure and costs, please click here.

It is possible to file an international patent application through the Patent Co-operation Treaty (PCT). We can draft and file a single patent application which has effect in a large number of countries. The application itself is not granted, but provides a useful way of obtaining applications in different countries at reasonable cost. It also enables a patentee to defer international patenting costs for up to 30 months from the first patent filing relating to the invention for which protection is sought.

For more information on International patent procedure and costs, please click here.

If your business is mainly involved with one or more specific countries, then patents can usually be obtained by filing nationally in the countries of interest to you.

For more information on filing direct national applications in other countries, please click here.