1. Intellectual Property (IP) Research Competencies
Compiled by:
Members of the PLL&IP SIS IP Caucus
Luci Barry
Lucy Curci-Gonzalez
Alina Kelly
Diana J. Koppang
Sarah Mauldin
Submitted to :
Jean O’Grady / PLL&IP Summit Research Audit (July 2014)
July 16, 2015

2. General Competencies Find primary and secondary resources
Identify specific IP area
Patent
Trademark
Copyright
Some subgroup
Trade secret
Licensing
Social Media
Privacy
Understand the differences between paid and free resources
Availability
Cost
Coverage
Timeframe
Level of Confidence
Using what is available where you are

3. Patent Research Basics
Find a patent (examples of U.S., WIPO, and EP) – and where to find (fee-based or free)
Has the patent been litigated (Federal, ITC, and PTAB)?
What is a file history and how to find and order it
Find prior art/non-patent literature and understand limitations, copyright law restrictions
Find the assignment history and renewal history for a patent.
Find a patent family

4. Trademark Research Basics
Find a trademark and its filing history
Has the trademark been litigated (Federal and Administrative Proceedings)?
Search TTAB filings/actions and where to find reported case law
What is a file history and how to find it
Identify primary trademark resources – treatises
Trademark Counterfeiters – using social media, eBay, domain name records for research
Find the assignment history

5. Copyright Basics Find a copyright record
How to order a copyright file history
Has the copyright been litigated?

6. Key Treatises (*Indicates must have title, electronic or print, for subject area)
Trademarks
*McCarthy on Trademarks and Unfair Competition
Gilson on Trademarks
*Guide to TTAB Practice
Law of Unfair Competition, Trademarks and Monopolies (Callmann)
Product Comparison Manual for Trademark Users (Pinckney)
Patents
*Chisum on Patents
Moy’s Walker on Patents
Post-Grant Proceedings Before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board

7. Key Treatises – Cont. (*Indicates must have title, electronic or print, for subject area)
Copyright
*Nimmer on Copyright
Goldstein on Copyright
Patry on Copyrights
Trade Secrets
*Milgrim on Trade Secrets
Privacy
*Proskauer on Privacy
Domain Names
*McGrady on Domain Names

8. Procedural Manuals (available online and in print)
Trademark Manual of Examining Procedure (TMEP)
Trademark Trial and Appeal Board Manual of Procedure (TBMP)
Manual of Patent Examining Procedure (MPEP)
Official Patent Trial Practice Guide

9. Key Websites and Databases (Italic = Fee-based)
Patent Searching
USPTO.GOV
FreePatentsOnline.com
Espacenet
WIPO Country Files (links to foreign patent database)
Thomson Innovation
Lexis Total Patent
Minesoft PatBase
Questel

10. Key Websites and Databases – Cont. (Italic = Fee-based)
Patent Litigation (Federal, ITC, and/or PTAB)
PTAB (ptabtrials.uspto.gov)
PTAB/BPAI Reading Room of Final Decisions
Docket Navigator
BNA (PTAB Navigator) and Bloomberg Law
Lexis CourtLink
Lexis
Westlaw

11. Key Websites and Databases – Cont. (Italic = Fee-based)
Trademark Searching
USPTO.gov
WIPO Country Profiles (links to foreign trademark databases)
Corsearch
Thomson Reuters Saegis/Serion
TrademarkVision

12. Key Websites and Databases – Cont. (Italic = Fee-based)
Trademark Litigation
TTABVUE
TTAB Reading Room of Final Decisions
BNA and Bloomberg Law
Lexis
Westlaw

13. Key Websites and Databases – Cont. (Italic = Fee-based)
Patent Analytics/Metrics
Docket Navigator (patents only)
Innography (patents only)
Lexis Patent Advisor (patents only)
Thomson Reuters Monitor Suite (all I.P.)
Lex Machina (primarily patents, some trademark and copyright coverage)

14. Key Websites and Databases – Cont. (Italic = Fee-based)
Copyrights
U.S. Copyright Office
Domain Names and Domain Name Disputes
WhoIs websites (various)
National Arbitration Forum (NAF)
World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)
BloombergLaw

15. Other Skills/Knowledge
Find licensing royalty rates
Research social media and limitations
Find the registrant of a website and search for domain name dispute information
Using trademark searches to find holding companies for a company’s patent portfolio
Identify non-practicing entities, intellectual property holding companies (f/k/a “patent trolls”)
Secretary of State records
Other DBA company resources
M&A due diligence (ownership, lien data)