Q: I recently spoke to representatives of Invent Tech Co and Invention Submission Corp. I showed one of my ideas to a representative of Invention Submission Corp. He signed a non-disclosure agreement that I have a copy of. I have since found out that they have had legal proceedings against them for misrepresenting their services. I wish to proceed with the patent application in the next few weeks. Does this letter and meeting establish in anyway a basis for the conception of my idea?

A: The Office strongly suggests you visit our web site, http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/com/iip/data.htm#Complaints, for information you should be aware of before doing business with any invention promotion firm. You will not only see the published complaints the USPTO has, but you will also find information that invention promotion firms are required by the American Inventors Protection Act (AIPA) to answer. Questions like, Total number of customers, known by the Company, who have received a net financial profit as a direct result of the Company's promotion services and what is the Company's success rate over the past five years [that is, the number of clients who have made more money from their invention than they have paid to the Company].

The Federal Trade Commission is another source to view published complaints as well, http://www.ftc.gov/foia/frequentrequest.htm.

Since your intent is to proceed with your patent application, please contact our Office at 1-800-786-9199 for patent information or visit the USPTO’s web site.

As far as the legal implication of the agreement you signed, the USPTO does not provide legal advice. We recommend that you should consult with a registered patent attorney/agent. A registered patent attorney and agent listing by geographic region is available on our website:

http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/dcom/olia/oed/roster/region/index.html