The Patent Marking Statute

Since 1842, U.S. law has required patent owners to provide notice of their patent rights to the public by marking patented articles. The current statute, codified at 35 U.S.C. '287(a), provides that a failure to mark bars a patentee from obtaining damages for the period before it provided a defendant in a patent infringement action with actual notice of its infringement allegations. This can have a significant financial impact, as up to six years of potential damages may be lost.

24 minute read March 27, 2007 at 01:17 PM
By
Paul A. Ragusa And Peter Withstandley
The Patent Marking Statute

Since 1842, U.S. law has required patent owners to provide notice of their patent rights to the public by marking patented articles.

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