As an LLC, how can I handle being sued for patent infringement if I don't want to go to court?

The patent process can be fairly expensive (depending on the product and your claims). I went through it over the course of several years (yes, you read that correctly) and it took MUCH longer than anyone projected and cost MUCH more as well. So depending upon your financial situation it might be cost prohibitive to proceed until you secure sufficient capital. Since the implementation of the FITF (aka FIF) system the rules and recommendations that stood for years have shifted. So the general recommendations you may think are good ideas may no longer apply. Know that if you DO decide to file a provisional patent you have 12 months from the date of filing to file a non-provisional patent. And if you make any changes (aka "new matter") you may have to file another provisional patent because you cannot add any new matter to the non-provisional patent. The provisional patent can be a useful tool - but depending upon the product and the strategy you are planning to execute during development and market testing - it may or may not provide the protection you desire. I would highly recommend that you consult with a patent attorney to get an idea about what's involved (i.e. costs, processes, time-frames). At the very least hire a skilled professional to do a patent search FOR you - not only to ensure that it in fact is unique but also to ensure it is "patentable". You may already know this but it's worth repeating: (1) Your fear of your idea of being "stolen" is one that almost every entrepreneur with a "big idea" holds and (2) It's far less likely to happen than you might think. I wish you the best of luck!

I am a patent attorney generally on the patent owner's side. Signing such a clause should make you nervous. You don't want to be responsible for the major company's infringement. The major company is likely getting more benefit out of using your software than your company is making by selling licenses. The previous gentleman's answer is incorrect. Anyone can be sued for patent infringement if they make, sell, or *use* the claimed invention. It depends on the claims in the asserted patent. Based on experience, it's much more likely that the larger entity would be sued for infringement. A patent infringement case could cost anywhere between $350k-$5M+ USD. http://www.cnet.com/news/how-much-is-that-patent-lawsuit-going-to-cost-you/ In order to properly answer your question, I would need to know why you feel it's "very unlikely" that someone would sue the major company for using your software. If the major company won't back down on this provision, the best thing you can do is determine if you need IP (defense) insurance. If a patent attorney determines that it is necessary, raise the price of your license and get IP insurance.

I am a corporate attorney and have advised clients of protection of the intellectual property integral to their operations. In the intellectual property world, there are three types of federal registration you can pursue - patent, trademark, and copyright. Patents secure ideas, trademarks secure brands, and copyrights secure written product. If you are looking to protect your idea, you may think about filing for a patent. The first step is securing a provisional patent that sort of holds a spot for your idea while your actual patent application is pending or your idea goes into development. The patent process is complicated and lengthy, so I would recommend getting the advice of a patent attorney if that is something you want to explore. Not all ideas are able to be patented, and you may find that a patent is not an option for you. The other option is to maintain your idea as a trade secret. This essentially means that you are careful about who you share it with, and when you do share it with anyone, you have an Non-Disclosure Agreement in place that prohibits them from disclosing your idea to anyone else or misappropriating it for themselves. If you had a company built around the idea, you would establish an in-depth trade secret program designed to prevent disclosure of your idea outside of the company. (e.g. Coca Cola has a trade secret program built around the recipe for Coke.) As an individual, you would just need to be careful and, to be extra thorough, get people with whom you share your idea to sign NDAs. There is no federal registration process involved in maintaining a trade secret, just common sense and consistency with your protective practices.

The answer: do both. The first thing you need to know about patents is that the U.S. now has a first-inventor-to-file system after the American Invents Act (AIA) went into effect in 2013. I have to disagree with Dan above: for hardware inventions especially, a patent is an important part of the business plan. The first inventor who "races to the patent office" now is typically the winner. This means if you do not file for a patent on your invention, you can lose the rights to your invention much easier than before the AIA. The next step is to think about how a patent fits into your business plan. A patent application is but a tool in your bag when starting up. A crowdsourcing campaign on a site like Indiegogo can validate the idea. But it also puts the idea out to the public and starts the 1-year clock ticking on when you can get a patent. For hardware startups, however, if you're not thinking about a patent upfront -- you're likely leaving a massive amount of your product's value on the table.

They may have patents on certain algorithms they use to sort / present jobs to people, but it's unlikely that anyone has a patent on the general idea of a career portal. If you'd like advice on how to do an effective patent search, or how to affordably file your own patents in the US I'm happy to help. all the best, Lee