The Usefulness of the Provisional Patent for the Small Business

Just because you're a small business doesn't mean you need to sacrifice patenting your ideas. Most lawyers won't tell you to file what's known as a PROVISIONAL patent application. This is an application that can be filed for a minimal cost - $80 in filing fees and about an hour's worth of attorney time - that can help you get a priority date and give you up to a year to determine whether that idea is worth spending upwards of 5K to get a regular (non-provisional) application on file with the PTO. If the idea's worthy, great! If not, you lose approximately $400. Not a bad investment.