Portions of this posting have been excerpted from Corporate Counsel (http://www.corpcounsel.com/id=1202636997049&kw=How%2520Loose%2520Lips%2520Sink%2520Patent%2520Ships&et=editorial&bu=Corporate%2520Counsel&cn=20140109&src=EMC-Email&pt=Afternoon%2520Update).

In an article from Corporate Counsel titled “How Loose Lips Sink Patent Ships,” the authors discuss situations in which inadvertent disclosures by inventors (or others close to the inventors) have harmed patents during litigation.  Damaging disclosures have been made in publications, presentations or posters in conferences, patents and patent applications, internal memoranda and reports, and in-court testimony.  The authors advise, “[w]ith wide-reaching potential impact, out-of-court disclosures can and will be exploited by your opponents in patent litigations, license negotiations and general due diligence.  Because a large majority of these disclosures include publications, public presentations, statements made in contemporaneous patent applications and internal memoranda and reports, these sources should and are the initial points of attack in any analysis, whether it be in a due diligence, litigation, license negotiation or [mergers and acquisitions].”  To prevent careless disclosures that can irreparably harm your patent and its value to your company, you should seek to improve intellectual property awareness among all members of your organization.  The authors suggest implementing an education program, reviewing and approving manuscripts for publication and presentation, making decisions on enforcement or licensing opportunities, and conducting initial reviews of third-party patents.

IP & Business Law Counseling, LLC can help your company implement policies and strategies to identify intellectual property, protect intellectual property (through patents, trademarks, and copyrights), avoid inadvertent disclosure of trade secrets and other valuable information, and monetize intellectual property assets.