“Before then any man might instantly use what another had invented; so that the inventor had no special advantage from his own invention. The patent system changed this; secured to the inventor, for a limited time, the exclusive use of his invention; and thereby added the fuel of interest to the fire of genius, in the discovery and production of new and useful things.”  – Abraham Lincoln

Who We Serve

IMG_0289Paul B. Heynssens Attorney at Law, PLC is an intellectual property law firm dedicated to providing quality legal services with integrity, to individuals and companies doing business throughout the world. We value industry experience, especially in design engineering, in our professionals backgrounds, as we believe it gives us an unparalleled perspective into the inventive process in our core areas of technical competence, as well as in related areas. We can help you determine if your invention is patentable and help you protect it through the appropriate patent protection, whether it is a utility, provisional, or design application. We also have considerable patent experience having filed and prosecuted applications in numerous technologies. We are also experienced in helping you select and register suitable, enforceable trademarks and servicemarks to protect your brand.

Whether a client is a large business entity, or an individual inventor we seek to identify their business goals with respect to IP and help them achieve them. In making patent protection decisions it is typical to balance issues such as cost effectiveness, breadth of coverage, speed of patent issuance, and others. We serve a variety of clients, including large corporate clients, small business entities, startups, and individual inventors. They all have diverse and have unique legal needs that we effectively serve as we seek to tailor IP protection to their budget and business objectives.

In helping clients make decisions regarding patent protection we also consider issues that might arise in the future, such as how a client’s rights might be affected in business or licensing negotiations, litigation, and how a patent portfolio can be developed to protect the client. By having professionals with combined legal and engineering experience, and listening to clients to serve their objectives we provide unique services to protect their valuable property rights.

Individuals and Small to Mid Sized Domestic Clients

IMG_0682An individual inventor or a small to mid sized entity may have a general idea that he or she may want to protect their invention, but needs help and counsel in finding their way through trademarking, and patenting. There are numerous questions we can help them with including explaining the difference between trademarks and patents. The different types of patents, if patent protection is appropriate (what about trade secrets?), can the invention be patented, should foreign patents be pursued, and how to build comprehensive intellectual property protection. These are just a few of the issues we routinely address with our clients who are just getting started dealing with intellectual property. Typically no two clients are alike, and that is one reason our industry experience helps. We have been down many of these paths before and feel we can offer valuable insight to help if the process is new to you.

Large Domestic Clients

For our clients who are larger entities we are experienced at working with in house IP or patent counsel in achieving your filing goals in a cost effective and efficient manner, especially in our core area of technical competence in circuits, and in particular those involving wireless technologies. Although this area of technology is our sweet spot, please realize that because of our utilization of experienced senior level technical people, we are competent across many technologies including into such varied areas as optics and mechanical devices, to name but two examples. When presented with disclosures our engineering experience helps us to efficiently turn these into a quality patent application. For our clients who may not have an in house legal counsel, or only have an in house general counsel we can effectively function as your patent and trademark department having experience in having done so for numerous clients. We can help you achieve your filing goals and adhere to your budget constraints.

Foreign Clients

The firm is also has long experience in servicing foreign based clients in supporting their US filing and prosecution efforts. Whether you are a foreign corporation, or law firm seeking to associate with a US firm to file for your clients, we can help you. We will be happy to support you US filing efforts, and to work with you to make sure the claims presented to the US patent office reflect your invention, and that the translations filed in the US are accurate and make sense.

Likewise the Firm is experienced in obtaining foreign patent and trademark protection for our US based clients, and maintaining those foreign patents. Through our established network of foreign associates we can file in just about any country that has a patent or trademark office. We are also experienced in regional filings such as in the EPO. We have many years of experience in direct foreign filings, and filing through the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT). We can advise you on which may be the best choice for you, regional filings such as in the EPO. We have many years of experience in direct foreign filings, and filing through the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT). We can advise you on which may be the best choice for you, or if foreign filing should even be considered. We are experienced in foreign prosecution, through issuance, and also help clients maintain and pay their annuities, when due.

If you think we may be right to represent you, please contact us to set up an initial consultation. We look forward to hearing from you.