What is a patent?
A patent is a legal right granted by a government to an inventor, giving them exclusive rights to make, use, sell and distribute and invention for a certain period of time.
Patent rights are territorial, granted by the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) in Canada, the United States Intellectual Property Office (USPTO) in the US, and the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) in Europe, as examples.
Currently, patents are valid for 20 years from the filing date of the patent application.