New Micro-Entity Status

Certain inventors will experience reduced U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) fees under a new micro-entity classification included in the new patent reform law. Fees charged to micro-entities will be 75 percent less than fees charged by the USPTO to large entities. The new legislation retains the traditional small entity classification, which provides a 50% reduction in fees charged to small entities.

In order to qualify as a micro-entity, an applicant must be an individual inventor, a small business with fewer than 500 employees, a university or a non-profit group. An inventor also cannot be named in more than four patents that have been previously filed with the USPTO and cannot have a gross income of more than three times the U.S. median household income in the year prior to this reform. And finally, the application must not be assigned to an entity earning more than three times the U.S. median income.

The new patent reform law includes numerous changes that may impact your invention protection and enforcement strategies. For more information on how these changes might affect your intellectual property rights, look for updates in Pat. Pend., the Boyle Fredrickson newsletter, or contact your Boyle Fredrickson attorney.