Jim Kushman seeks creative ways to define an invention in order to sell the development at each stage as it proceeds through the patent process.

In his practice at the firm he helped to found, Jim concentrates on the preparation and prosecution of patent applications before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, as well as patent offices throughout the world. His global practice encompasses all phases of protecting and maintaining intellectual property assets, from the initial application through appeals, interferences, oppositions, and litigation support.

Jim always looks for the “bite of novelty” that distinguishes a client’s invention from existing inventions, and he works hard to define that novelty. Often, prior art already contains aspects of an invention; in those cases, Jim will explain to an examiner, a judge, or a jury the novel aspects of the client’s invention that are significant and patentable. That’s where the bite of novelty is essential, as Jim can emphasize the differences that the novelty achieves and the advantage it offers over what has been done before.

According to Jim, a background in mechanical engineering lends a methodological approach to his practice. Jim always takes a look at the inventor’s “preferred embodiments” and, in a very systematic way, works to shape them into an invention that can be recognized.