This article discusses potential avenues to receive free legal assistance with preparing and filing a patent application at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

1. Summary

The USPTO's Patent Pro Bono Program offers free legal assistance with drafting and filing a patent application for individuals and small businesses that qualify.

2. What is Pro Bono?

A Pro Bono program offers free or reduced cost legal services for individuals and small companies that cannot afford legal representation.

Pro Bono is Latin for "for the public good."

3. USPTO Patent Pro Bono Program

For inventors and small companies that cannot afford the legal fees to draft and file a patent application, the USPTO has a Patent Pro Bono Program that provides free legal assistance in drafting and filing a patent application. In the Pro Bono Program, patent practitioners (i.e., patent attorneys and patent agents) volunteer their time to help inventors and small companies that cannot afford patent drafting and filing legal services.

Visit the USPTO's Patent Pro Bono Program page to learn more about and apply for the USPTO's Patent Pro Bono Program.

4. USPTO Patent Pro Bono Program does not Include USPTO Filing Fees

The USPTO Pro Bono Program is for the legal fees and not for the USPTO filing fees. Stellar Patent^® is unaware of any programs that assist with paying the USPTO fees. The USPTO discounts some fees to encourage more individuals and small companies to seek patent protection for their innovations. For a non-provisional patent application, the small entity USPTO filing fees are $728.00 and the micro entity USPTO filing fees are $364.00.

5. Other Pro Bono Programs

Law firms may offer their own Pro Bono program. Stellar Patent^® does not maintain a list of firms that offer their own Pro Bono program.