1. Who can hinder you with a patent, and how?

A patent confers on its owner the right to prohibit third parties from making, implementing or marketing the protected invention. It is clear that third parties may be hindered by a patent. The response to this will vary according to the circumstances.

So, by the time we realize that a patent could be in our way, the exploitation of the protected technology may still be just a project or already a reality, and more or less investment may already have been made.

The inconvenience caused by a patent can take many forms.

• You can be sued for patent infringement, with the risk of having to pay damages and being prohibited from using the invention protected by the patent.

• More generally, a patent can create uncertainty about the rights one has to exploit a technology....