Keisen Associates is uniquely situated to help you reach the markets in Japan and elsewhere in Asia (and in the USA, as well) with patents for your inventions. We are multicultural, multilingual, and eager to be of service. We represent international clients before the Japan Patent Office (JPO) and Japanese courts through our Philadelphia and Tokyo offices. Our Japanese practice group in the Philadelphia office is the largest one outside Japan, equipped to process and file your inventions promptly. The offices cooperate to provide around-the-clock, timely results.
Our attorneys, agents, and other specialists are knowledgeable in both Japanese patent law as well as a broad range of disciplines, such as the mechanical, electrical, computer, chemical, and biological fields. Our technical team can prepare clear, precise, and standardized Japanese documents; review prepared Japanese documents; translate English and Japanese documents; support arbitration; give expert witness in Japanese law; and make expert witness referrals.
Patents
Patents (tokkyo in Japanese), the core type of intellectual property protection for inventions, require definite levels of novelty, inventive step (advance over the “prior art”), and industrial applicability.
We are confident in our services can help you with:
- Normal PCT national phase entry to Japan (get a free cost estimate now!)
- Streamlined PCT national phase entry to multiple Asian countries)
- Dealing with Requests for Examination, including accelerated methods like Patent Prosecution Highway
- Handling Office Actions
Even if you fear that you missed the deadline to file, or if it has been rejected by the JPO, or there is some other concern you have for your invention, we may be able to work with you to seek reinstatement or appeal for reconsideration. Please contact us before abandoning the case.
Utility Models
Some inventive ideas are not quite revolutionary enough to be awarded regular patents, but can still be protected as IP in Japan. Alternatively, you may have an invention you want to have exclusive rights to exploit but do not want to spend too much on IP. In that case, a utility model patent (jitsuyou shin-an) may be the best way to get your IP protected in Japan. Utility model patents are more difficult to enforce than normal patents are, but are planned for simple inventions and are easier to acquire than normal patents.
Keisen Associates, with skilled IP attorneys and technical staff in Philadelphia and Tokyo, can help you register your utility model in Japan. Or, if you are unsure whether to apply for a utility model or a patent registration for your particular invention, please feel free to consult us.
Do you have questions on filing patents or utility models in Japan? We can help! Contact us at 215-701-6349 or contact us from the form below.