Maryland Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts (MdVLA) has a new partnership with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to help financially under-resourced artists/inventors apply for patents and/or receive guidance, through referrals to pro bono Patent Attorneys and Patent Agents. MdVLA’s Pro Bono Patent Program serves solo inventors, nonprofit organizations, and small businesses that are involved in the arts and based in Maryland.

Please contact our Patent Pro Bono Program at info@mdvla.org if you have any questions. If you are a registered patent attorney or patent agent and would like to volunteer with this program, please fill out our Pro Bono Patent Volunteer Application.

Roadmap to Filing a Patent Application

Eligibility Requirements:

Solo Inventors

• Total household income must qualify within MdVLA’s Income Guidelines 
• Must not be obligated to assign, sell, or give ownership of the rights to the invention to a third party
• To file, you must have an invention – not just an idea

Multi-Member Businesses

• There must be no more than 4 known inventors for the invention
• Each inventor must reside in Maryland
• Each inventor’s household income must qualify within  MdVLA’s Income Guidelines 
• Not obligated to assign rights to another entity

Nonprofits With 501(c)(3) Status From the IRS

• There must be no more than 4 known inventors of the invention and each inventor must agree to assign their rights to the non-profit
• Budget less than $1 million per year
• The non-profit must not be a research institution or an institution of higher learning
• Not obligated to assign rights to another entity
• Qualify Individually:
  • Each inventor must reside in Maryland
  • Each inventor’s household income must qualify within  MdVLA’s Income Guidelines
  • Each inventor must not have filed 4 or more patent applications with the USPTO

All Applicants

• Each inventor must be a resident of Maryland. 
• Must not have filed four (4) or more patent applications with the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
• Must demonstrate patent system knowledge by either having a provisional application already on file with the Patent and Trademark Office or completing an online course (Spanish version) and submitting a certificate of training.
• Must be able to communicate the problem your invention addresses without giving any confidential information. To demonstrate an invention, you should be able to describe the invention so that someone else could actually make and use the invention.
• You must complete a prior art search on your own before placement.

Required Prior Art Search

This is a mandatory requirement for this program. Take your prior art search seriously.

What is Prior Art? “Prior Art” encompasses all existing information, knowledge, and references existing anywhere in the world prior to filing a patent. When patent agents and attorneys talk about “prior art,” they are referring to the following, in relation to your particular invention:

• Prior Patents (U.S. or Foreign);
• Published Articles;
• Public Demonstrations; and
• Other Public Disclosures (including products for sale anywhere in the world).

There is always prior art out there. We do not accept “there is nothing like my invention out there” as an appropriate response to our request for a prior art search. We are NOT asking you to find your exact invention. We are asking you to find similar inventions.

How do I search for Prior Art? A great place to start is to look through existing patents. You may do so on the USPTO’s website, the European Patent Office’s website (eSpaceNet), any one of several paid subscription services, or by using Google Patents. Another great place to start is a product search on websites that sell products similar to yours. A well-done search should reveal similar inventions, including those inventions upon which your own invention likely relies. More importantly, the prior art search should help educate you, as the inventor, as to the current state of the field of your invention.

The USPTO considers all prior art globally, not just applications, patents, and other descriptions from the United States. Many companies around the world file patents with the EPO, and many of these are in English or translated into English. We suggest you search through applications and patents separately.

Guidelines : 

• False or misleading information given in an application may result in delays in, or denial/termination of, referral assistance.
• Notification is required if the information on this form materially changes. For example, if contact information changes or annual household income materially increases.
• Do not provide any confidential information to MdVLA – only provide confidential information to a registered patent attorney or agent who agrees to represent you.
• MdVLA may deny anyone’s application, for any reason, in its sole discretion.
• Patent matters can be very time sensitive. MdVLA does not guarantee that a suitable volunteer patent professional will be found, nor do they guarantee that one will be found within a reasonable amount of time. You must independently seek counsel for any time-sensitive matter, or any other matter for which you are uncomfortable using MdVLA’s referral system.
• If your application is accepted and you are referred to a patent professional, the representation will, in most cases, be limited to a specific case and a specific amount of time or phase of patent prosecution.

USPTO Fees

MdVLA charges a small administrative fee, and any patent attorney or agent services are free. Inventors are subject to fees owed to the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Find the current fees here: USPTO fee schedule. 

Pre-Application Checklist

Pre-Application Checklist

Before starting your application, please make sure you:

• Have read and completed all of the previous steps.
• Have the name and e-mail address of each inventor.
• Collect financial information about each inventor and (if applicable) your business or nonprofit.
• Collect basic information about your invention.
• Have information on previous patents/applications filed by each inventor (if applicable).

Once you are ready to submit an application, please click below to access our Pro Bono Patent Lawyer Request Form