From the course: Understanding Intellectual Property

Unlock the full course today

Join today to access over 23,500 courses taught by industry experts.

Myth of the poor man's patent

Myth of the poor man's patent

From the course: Understanding Intellectual Property

Start my 1-month free trial Buy for my team

Myth of the poor man's patent

“

- Myth of the Poor Man's Patent. Maybe you've heard that you can mail yourself an idea in a sealed envelope that you never open. They believe that somehow this gives them some rights. You take your idea and then you complete some documents. You seal it in an envelope and you mail it to yourself. It gets postmarked, and you keep it sealed until you need it. Some people call this the poor man's patent. This is a myth. There is no poor man's patent. You get no patent rights from mailing yourself an idea. You don't get any copyrights or trademark rights whatsoever from doing this, either. In fact, the very documents that are in that envelope would be inadmissible in court under the Rules of Evidence because it was made in anticipation of litigation. Instead, if you're a poor inventor who wants to preserve any rights you may have, you'll want to keep a lab notebook, have emails, keep documents on your computer that are dated, and have a story that is told through a normal business record…

Contents