Have you patented a product or process for your business? If you’ve created something new and wonderful, you'll want to protect that product, process, or design from being used without your permission. Patent infringement insurance is a great way to protect your IP and your business.
We've answered some of your biggest questions about patent infringement and how to protect your patents.
What Type of Insurance Covers Patent Infringement?
Intellectual property insurance, aka patent infringement insurance, can help your company protect its IP as well as protect you in the event a competitor accuses you of infringing on their intellectual property.
An intellectual insurance policy is designed to financially protect you in the event that you are a victim of intellectual property infringement when someone steals your protected idea or design.
It also provides protection if you find yourself in the unfortunate position of being forced into litigation for allegedly copying someone else's intellectual property.
What is Patent Infringement?
A patent is an exclusive right granted for an invention (product or process). Patents may be granted for inventions in any field, ranging from an everyday kitchen utensil to a nanotechnology chip to a process for producing a specific chemical compound.
In principle, the patent holder has the exclusive right to prevent or stop others from commercially using or profiting from the patented product/ process without the patent holder's permission.
Patent infringement occurs when someone sells, imports, uses, or makes a product that someone else invented without permission.
Patent infringement is illegal and a patent holder can sue to stop the illegal activity from continuing, as well as to punish the infringer for monetary damage.
How to Know if You're Infringing on a Patent
You may very well have come up with your product on your own, without outside inspiration.
But if another person had the same idea and patented it before you -- or patented a component utilized by your product -- you will be committing patent infringement if you attempt to market and sell your product.
How to avoid patent infringement
One way to protect yourself from inadvertently committing patent infringement is to do a Freedom-to-Operate (FTO) search to determine whether your product, process, or parts thereof have already been patented.
You can conduct a patent search yourself or you can ask your business attorney to conduct the FTO search on your behalf. Professional FTO searches can be a costly business expense but they come with the peace of mind that your legal team has done their due diligence to avoid possible patent infringement.
How to Deal with Patent Infringement
You may have to deal with patent infringement at some point in your business, whether that's protecting your IP or defending yourself against a patent infringement accusation.
How to deal with protecting your patent
Patent infringement insurance, or IP insurance, allows you to protect your patents and intellectual property. Abatement coverage protects your patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, and innovations from predatory companies. This unique plaintiff's policy reimburses litigation expenses, with no repayment required if you lose a lawsuit.
How to protect yourself against patent infringement lawsuits
Patent infringement insurance also protects you in the event someone accuses you of infringing on an existing patent.
Patent "trolls", or Patent Assertion Entities, exist to sue companies for using their non-core products. As many as 68% of all patent lawsuits are filed by trolls, who target small businesses and start-ups. Troll defense coverage is your best defense against these costly demands.
Aegis Insurance Markets Protects Your Business
At Aegis Insurance Markets, our team of insurance professionals can help you protect your business against patent infringement theft and against "patent trolls" who may be seeking financial gain from accusing you of infringing on an existing patent. Get a free quote for patent protection today.