What are the time limits for filing a patent application?
Before making plans for the timing of the filing of a patent application, any inventor should seek advice of competent counsel. The time periods described here represent only a few of the factors that will influence how quickly a patent application should be filed. Under U.S. patent law, a patent will not be granted to an applicant unless the application is filed less than one year from the date that the invention was sold or offered for sale within the United States. Yet another condition imposed under U.S. patent law is that the patent will be denied unless the application is filed within one year of the date the invention was described in a printed publication anywhere in the world. While these are the two most commonly mentioned so-called “statutory bars” in U.S. patent law (35 USC section 102), they are by no means the only factors that should be taken into account when one decides when to file a patent application (or, when to consult patent counsel). Numerous other factors influ
