DIY Patent Applications: A Recipe for Disaster

“Can I file my own patent application?” Legally? Yes. Should you? Almost certainly not.

Patent law is incredibly technical. The claims, which are the part that defines what’s actually protected, must be written with surgical precision. One wrong word can mean the difference between strong protection and worthless paper.

Patent attorneys have technical degrees. I have a master’s in computer science and engineering-level physics coursework. We also have legal training, and we passed a special patent bar exam. We know how to draft claims that are worthwhile.

The money you “save” doing it yourself can cost you exponentially more when your patent can’t actually protect anything.

Think of it this way: you wouldn’t record an album without someone who understands sound engineering and expect it to make the charts, and you wouldn’t create practical effects for a horror film without someone who knows how to make fake blood look realistic. You could, and people do, but think about what those results are like. There isn’t a fun market for useless patents the way there is an audience that enjoys horror movies with terrible special effects in part because the effects are awful.

If you just want a cool thing to hang on your wall and don’t care much if you never get a patent, then DIY is fine.

If you’re serious about your invention and having strong patent rights, hire a patent attorney to help you. Patents are my craft. Let me do what I do best so you can focus on what you do best.