Monday, November 3, 2008

Patent Information

A patent is actually a grant of property right for the inventor of that thing. A patent protects new inventions and it also covers how things work and what they do, how the things go further, what they are made of and how they are made. It also provides right to owner to prevent others from making, using, importing or selling the invention without permission.

A patent is legally enforceable and gives the owner the exclusive right to commercially exploit the invention for the life of the patent. This is not automatic-you must apply for a patent to obtain exclusive rights to exploit your invention.

The procedure for granting patents with the requirements placed on the patentee and the extent of the exclusive rights vary widely between countries according to national laws and international agreements. Actually, a patent application must include one or more claims defining the invention, which must be new, inventive, and useful or industrially applicable. In most of the countries some subject areas are excluded from patents, such as business methods and mental acts. The exclusive right granted to a patentee in most countries is the right to prevent or exclude others from making, using, selling, offering to sell or importing the invention.

Patents grant an inventor the right to exclude others from producing or using the inventor's discovery or invention for a limited period of time. Congress enacted U.S. patent laws under its Constitutional grant of authority to protect the discoveries of inventors.

How Patents Work
Whenever an inventors come up with a new device, the first thing they want to do is patent it. Patents are a government's way of giving an inventor ownership of his or her creation. For a specific time, patent-holders are allowed to control how their inventions are used, allowing them to reap the financial rewards of their work. Patents are a palpable, legally binding manifestation of a person's genius and innovation and they allow a person to actually own an idea.

Saturday, November 1, 2008

Tips About Lemon Law Attorneys San Diego

Consumer rights is applicable to everything when it comes to buying goods, and that includes the purchasing of automotive vehicles. The Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, more commonly known as the California Lemon Law, sees to it that consumer rights is always upheld and protected, especially by lemon law attorneys San Diego.

The California Lemon Law applies to cars where the dealership has failed to repair successfully within the warranty period, despite the number attempts to do so. While the number of visits is not that specific, it usually is about your fourth visit when you should start taking the legal route. Also, if the car has been in there for over 30 days, you can apply it then as well. However, keep in mind that it is assessed case-by-case.

If ever your situation satisfy these conditions, then the manufacturer or dealership is supposed to refund your money or replace the vehicle with a similar one. The attorney's fees are also to be included, which is good for those who can't afford one. These can apply even if the car started going haywire outside the 18-month period or has already exceeded 18,000 miles.

This lemon law also applies to used and leased vehicles, which include boats, motorcycles, and recreational vehicles that are private and non-commercial. It can apply to business as long as they are under 10,000 pounds in total gross weight and at a total of five vehicles or less.

Customers are not necessarily in need of self-arbitration, but they will have to settle a warranty dispute to the manufacturer before taking the case to court if a state-certified arbitration program is maintained. This process usually is outlined in the warranty or owner's manual. But then again, it would usually tell you to have it repaired by the manufacturer, which just leads you back to square one.

If the manufacturer still does not comply to the terms and conditions of warranty, then it would be wise to take it to the court. By this time, a good lawyer experienced in this field is to be hired and a questionnaire or complaint form from the Californian Vehicle Warranty Rights Act Department is to be filled up. Information such as the brand and model of the vehicle, year of manufacture, mileage, name, contact details, date of purchase, and so on is to be written down and submitted with copies of documents needed.

Upon submission and approval, you are to fill up another form that states the parameters of eligibility. Your lawyer should be able to handle this by filing a claim under the California Lemon Law with a letter to the manufacturer.

This letter will notify the manufacturer of your intentions to initiate a breach of express or implied warranty. With that, a copy of that document must also be submitted to the Consumer Affairs Department and the Attorney General's office. These requirements are necessary for the proper processing of your case.

The California Lemon Law is there to assist in obtaining either a refund or a replacement of the car if ever bad things do happen. This is only possible if you have filed the proper documents and hired some lemon law attorneys San Diego who is experienced in this field. If you have all of those, then things can turn to your favor.