Terms Used In U.S. Code > Title 35 > Part II > Chapter 10 - Patentability of Inventions

• claimed invention: means the subject matter defined by a claim in a patent or an application for a patent. See 35 USC 100
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
• individual: shall include every infant member of the species homo sapiens who is born alive at any stage of development. See 1 USC 8
• invention: means invention or discovery. See 35 USC 100
• inventor: means the individual or, if a joint invention, the individuals collectively who invented or discovered the subject matter of the invention. See 35 USC 100
• joint research agreement: means a written contract, grant, or cooperative agreement entered into by 2 or more persons or entities for the performance of experimental, developmental, or research work in the field of the claimed invention. See 35 USC 100
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
• patentee: includes not only the patentee to whom the patent was issued but also the successors in title to the patentee. See 35 USC 100
• process: means process, art or method, and includes a new use of a known process, machine, manufacture, composition of matter, or material. See 35 USC 100
• State: means a State, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or any other territory or possession of the United States. See 1 USC 7