BUSINESS

If you come up with an invention or device, see a patent attorney straightaway and obtain a
patent or utility model right. Otherwise, your invention or device may be copied by others or
you may be barred from working your own invention or device as someone else registers a
similar invention or device ahead of you.

Upon being consulted, a patent attorney ascertains the nature of your technology and
decides which type of intellectual property is more suitable, a patent or utility model. If
necessary, he/she evaluates the registrability and validity of your invention or device by
searching for prior art.

While patents and utility models both concern technical ideas, the former protects
inventions, which are creations of advanced technical ideas, with the latter covering
devices, which are creations of broader technical ideas. Utility model rights can be obtained
virtually without examination, and are therefore particularly useful for "mini-inventions" -
which are less advanced than full-blown inventions - particularly for technologies that have
a short life cycle because of a short lead time.

Once a decision to pursue a registration of the invention or device is made, the patent
attorney will prepare a specification, a document which explains the technology concerned
in detail, as well as an application, and file them with the Patent Office (typically done on
line after electronically converting application documentation).

Upon being consulted, a patent attorney identifies the main points of the design, and works
out a strategy to obtain the broadest possible scope of rights.

Once a decision to pursue a registration of the design is made, the patent attorney will
prepare an application and design drawings (or photographs if necessary), and file them with
the Patent Office.

If you intend to use a trademark to differentiate your products or services from those of
others, see a patent attorney and obtain a trademark right.

Upon being consulted, a patent attorney ascertains the categories of the products or
services, determines whether the desired trademark is worth registering, if necessary, and
searches for similar registered or registration-pending trademarks.

Once a decision to pursue a registration of the trademark is made, the patent attorney will
prepare an application and trademark samples, and file them with the Patent Office.

If the application encounters problems, such as the issuance of a notice of reasons for
rejection, the patent attorney will study these problems from an expert point of view, and
will take appropriate steps to overcome them.

If someone is granted a patent for an invention that lacks patentability or a registration for
a trademark that lacks registrability, the patent attorney can file an opposition to the
patent or registration with the Patent Office at your instructions. This is an important
procedure geared towards preventing someone else from unfairly obtaining rights that would
hamper your corporate activities, such as manufacture and sale.

Conversely, you may find yourself at the receiving end of an opposition upon being granted
a patent or registration. In that event, your patent attorney will study the opposition
closely, and will take the necessary steps to protect rights, including the filing of a written
argument.

Patent attorneys take all necessary steps relating to the registration, transfer or
amendment of patents, utility model rights, design rights and trademark rights, as well as
their associated licenses.

In any of the following cases, your patent attorney ascertains the situation and files a
request for a trial according to the purpose at your instruction: the examiner hands down a
rejection decision based on the judgment that the reasons for rejection given by him or her
still stand despite your efforts to overcome them; you wish to amend your patent to
correct a minor flaw you have found; or you need to have the registration of someone else's
trademark canceled.

Conversely, if a trial is requested against your rights, your patent attorney will take the
necessary procedural steps to defend them.

If you object to the decision of a trial, your patent attorney can bring a suit against it to
the Tokyo High Court at your instruction.

In the case of an infringement suit brought by you against someone or one brought by
someone against you, your patent attorney will assist you and your lawyer to bring the suit
to a favorable conclusion.

Your patent attorney makes an appraisal of, among other things, the scope of claims of
your invention, device or design and the similarity of your trademark with already registered
or registration-pending trademarks at your instruction.

Your patent attorney can also seek the Patent Office's opinion on these matters by filing a
request for interpretation on your behalf.

A utility model right does not basically involve an examination process. However, your
patent attorney can file a request for a technical opinion with the Patent Office to verify
the registrability of your utility model. In addition, your patent attorney can also conduct an
appraisal of the technical opinion of the Patent Office.

Industrial property rights are protected by individual countries with their domestic laws, so
rights obtained in Japan are not extended to other countries. If you intend to manufacture
or sell products or use your trademarks in a foreign country, it is necessary to obtain
industrial property rights of that country and comply with its industrial property system. So
far, over 120 countries, including all major countries, have signed the Paris Convention to
facilitate the international protection of industrial property rights, with more than 90
countries having become parties to the Patent Cooperation Treaty, which relate to patents.

If you wish to obtain a foreign intellectual property rights for your inventions or trademarks,
see a patent attorney. He or she will carry out the complex application procedure for you.
For this reason, patent attorneys stay in touch with their affiliated colleagues in other
countries via letters, faxes and face-to-face meetings for exchange of information and
views.

You are of course entitled to take action to acquire an industrial property right or settle a
dispute over an industrial property right yourself.

However, the acquisition of an industrial property right or settlement of a dispute over an
industrial property right requires advanced technical, legal and practical knowledge, which
encompasses, among other things, describing an invention or device - an abstract technical
idea - in words, defining the scope of the technology, delineating the characteristics of a
design and determining the similarity of trademarks.

Patent attorneys are the only people who have the national qualification required to handle
these demanding tasks. They will make the acquisition of an industrial property right or
settlement of a dispute over an industrial property right a less arduous process, and will
protect your interests by making you aware of any pitfalls.

Please note that nobody other than a patent attorney is allowed to act as an agent in
industrial property right procedures by law without a special reason to do so (Article 22-2
of the Patent Attorney Law).

Advice can also be given on intellectual property rights other than industrial property rights,
such as copyrights for paintings, movies, music and computer programs, as well as the
layout of semiconductor integrated circuits, as these belong to an allied legal domain.