Patent Invalidity Searches That Hold Up When the Case Is on the Line
Invalidity and validity analysis for litigation, IPR, licensing, and acquisition diligence, powered by AI-assisted prior art search and verified by qualified patent professionals.
A patent invalidity search is a systematic prior art search conducted to challenge the validity of a granted patent: identifying patents, publications, and public disclosures that predate its filing and anticipate or render obvious its claims. It is the standard defensive weapon in infringement litigation, inter partes review (IPR), and licensing disputes.
What an invalidity analysis delivers
Built for defendants, IPR petitioners, licensees, and acquirers who need references that survive expert scrutiny.
Exhaustive prior art search
Patent and non-patent literature searched across global databases, including USPTO, EPO, WIPO, and technical publications, with a documented, repeatable search strategy.
Claim-element-to-reference mapping
The strongest references mapped element by element against the challenged claims, in the chart format litigators actually use.
Anticipation & obviousness analysis
Each reference assessed for §102 anticipation and combined into §103 obviousness positions with explicit motivation-to-combine reasoning.
IPR / PTAB readiness
Analysis structured for inter partes review and post-grant proceedings as well as district-court invalidity contentions.
File history review
Prosecution history examined for estoppel, narrowing amendments, and admissions that sharpen the invalidity case.
Validity stress-testing for owners
The same rigor pointed inward: we stress-test your own claims before you assert or license them, so you learn your weaknesses from us, not from opposing counsel.
How we verify every deliverable
AI-assisted research, verified line by line by qualified patent professionals on every engagement, not just the big ones.
AI-assisted prior art mining
Our tooling sweeps global patent databases and technical literature at machine scale, surfacing candidate references that keyword-driven searches miss.
Human verification of every reference
A qualified patent professional reads each candidate against the actual claim language and discards anything that does not genuinely teach the limitation.
Expert review before delivery
The final analysis is reviewed for legal relevance and litigation-readiness, the standard behind our 1200+ delivered charts and reports.
The Zero-Hallucination Guarantee
Every invalidity analysis we deliver is backed by our Zero-Hallucination Guarantee: every reference cited is a real document, verified against the claims, with its actual disclosure date confirmed. Nothing is fabricated, assumed, or stretched; a manufactured reference collapses under the first hour of opposing expert review.
Turnaround and pricing
AI-assisted search compresses the research phase dramatically: invalidity analyses that take traditional firms weeks are delivered in days, up to 10× faster, with rush scheduling available when a filing deadline or court date drives the calendar.
Pricing is accessible and competitive: fixed-fee project pricing or retainer arrangements, with volume discounts for multi-patent disputes. Contact us with the patent number and the posture of your matter for a scoped quote.
Ask for an anonymized sample invalidity chart when you get in touch. You will see how we map references to claim elements and grade reference strength before you commit.
Frequently asked questions
What is a patent invalidity search?
A patent invalidity search is a prior art search aimed at proving a granted patent should never have issued. It hunts for patents, publications, and public disclosures that predate the patent's effective filing date and disclose its claimed invention. It is standard practice in infringement defense, IPR petitions, and pre-assertion diligence.
How much does a patent invalidity search cost?
Cost depends on the technology, the number of claims challenged, and how crowded the prior art field is. We offer fixed-fee project pricing and retainer arrangements at accessible, competitive rates, well below traditional research firms because AI-assisted search removes most of the manual hours. Contact us for a scoped quote.
How long does a patent invalidity search take?
Most invalidity searches are delivered in days, not weeks, up to 10× faster than traditional firms. Rush scheduling is available when a court deadline or IPR filing window drives the timeline.
What are the grounds for patent invalidity?
The main grounds are anticipation (a single reference discloses every claim element), obviousness (the claimed invention was an obvious combination of prior art), lack of enablement or written description, and indefinite claim language. Most successful invalidity cases rest on prior art under §102 and §103.
What is the difference between an invalidity search and a patentability search?
Direction and stakes. A patentability search examines your invention before filing to see if it is new. An invalidity search attacks someone else's granted patent after issue, hunting art the examiner missed. Invalidity searches dig deeper: the burden in litigation is clear and convincing evidence.
Can an invalidity search support an IPR petition?
Yes. Inter partes review petitions live or die on printed publications: patents and printed literature. Our invalidity analyses are structured for PTAB use, with references mapped element by element to the challenged claims and grounds framed for the petition format.
Challenge the patent before it challenges you
Send us the patent number and the posture of your matter. A specialized patent professional will respond within one business day.
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