Patent Attorney and Founder
Should Your Patent Belong to You, or Your Company?
At some point, almost every inventor hits the same wall.
You’ve built something real.
You’ve spent nights fixing it.
You’ve put money into it.
You’ve formed an LLC around it.
Now the question shows up:
Do I keep the patent in my personal name, or assign it to my company?
It sounds small.
Like paperwork.
Like a form you fill out and forget.
But this choice sticks with you for years.
It affects your risk.
Your money.
Your stress level.
Your future exit.
So let’s talk about it like humans, not like legal textbooks.
Because most inventors don’t get this wrong on purpose.
They get it wrong because nobody explains it in plain language.
The Place Most Inventors Start
Here’s the story I hear all the time.
You had an idea.
You built a first version.
You tested it in your garage or office.
You fixed what broke.
You kept going.
Then you formed an LLC.
Not because you were rich yet.
But because you planned to be.
Maybe you grabbed the business name years ago.
Maybe you stayed quiet.
No ads.
No sales.
Just development.
People call it “stealth mode.”
Now things are changing.
Manufacturing is close.
Sales are coming.
Money will start moving.
And suddenly the patent question isn’t theory anymore.
It’s real.
Why the Question Feels Hard
Most inventors think like creators, not like risk managers.
You built the invention.
So emotionally, it feels personal.
So your brain says:
“If my business fails, I don’t want to lose my invention.”
That’s fair.
You don’t want years of work trapped in a dead company.
So personal ownership feels safe.
It feels flexible.
It feels like control.
And yes, if you own the patent personally, you can:
- License it.
- Sell it.
- Start a new company later.
- Walk away from the old one.
That sounds good.
But ownership and protection are not the same thing.
Sometimes the thing that feels safest actually creates more risk.
Life Changes Once You Leave the Garage
When you’re still building alone, life is simple.
No factories.
No partners.
No contracts.
No disputes.
But once you move into the real world, everything changes.
Now you’re dealing with:
- Manufacturers
- Designers
- Engineers
- Marketers
- Distributors
Each one brings paperwork.
Each one brings promises.
Each one brings the chance for conflict.
Not because people are bad.
But because business is messy.
Deadlines get missed.
Money gets tight.
Expectations don’t match reality.
And when things go wrong, someone always asks:
Who owns the IP?
That answer decides who carries the risk.
What Happens If You Own the Patent Personally
Let’s walk through a simple story.
You own the patent in your own name.
You hire a product designer.
You sign a deal.
The designer misses milestones.
You complain.
They argue back.
Now the relationship cracks.
One side talks to a lawyer.
Now it’s no longer personal.
It’s legal.
The lawyer asks one question:
Who owns the invention?
You do.
So who gets named in the lawsuit?
You.
Not just your company.
Your name.
Your assets.
Your bank accounts.
Your house.
Your future income.
That’s the part nobody sees early.
Personal ownership keeps everything close to your chest, including the danger.
Business Ownership Creates Distance
An LLC is not just a tax thing.
Its real job is separation.
It creates space between:
Your business life
and
Your personal life.
When the company owns the patent, the company becomes the front line.
So if something goes wrong:
- The company gets sued.
- The company owes money.
- The company handles disputes.
Not you personally.
Think of it like this.
If a storm hits, do you want to stand outside, or sit inside a building?
The company is the building.
The patent inside the company stays sheltered with it.
Why Business-to-Business Matters So Much
Once you manufacture, you are no longer a hobby inventor.
You’re now running contracts.
You sign agreements with:
- Factories
- Vendors
- Software teams
- Marketing firms
Those agreements expect a business entity.
Not a person with a side project.
And when those contracts break, courts look at who owns the engine of the business.
The engine is the patent.
If the patent is personal, you become the engine.
If the patent is corporate, the company becomes the engine.
That one detail decides where pressure lands.
The “Corporate Veil” Without Lawyer Talk
Lawyers love the phrase “corporate veil.”
Here’s what it really means in plain words.
Your company is treated like its own person.
It can:
- Own things
- Sign things
- Owe things
- Get sued
So you don’t have to.
When the patent belongs to the company, the company stands between you and trouble.
Not perfect.
Not magic.
But powerful.
Without it, your personal life sits directly on top of your business risk.
And that’s heavy to carry long term.
But What If the Company Fails?
This is where inventors hesitate.
They say:
“What if the company shuts down and my patent is stuck inside it?”
Good question.
But here’s the truth.
If you own the company, you control its assets.
If the company dissolves, the patent doesn’t vanish.
It transfers.
It moves.
It comes back to you.
Assignment is not prison.
It’s parking.
While the business lives, the patent lives with it.
If the business dies, the patent can move.
You’re not losing control.
You’re using structure.
Control Still Belongs to You
Another fear sounds like this:
“If I assign the patent, I lose control.”
Not if you own the company.
You still decide:
- Who licenses it
- Who sells it
- Who uses it
- Who buys it
You’re just making decisions as the company owner, not as an individual.
It’s the same driver.
Just a safer vehicle.
Selling Gets Easier When the Company Owns the IP
Let’s talk about exits for a second.
One day, someone may want to buy what you built.
They won’t just buy the idea.
They buy structure.
They ask:
- Who owns the patent?
- Who owns the brand?
- Who owns the product?
Buyers don’t like messy ownership.
If the patent is personal, they have to untangle:
- Licenses
- Assignments
- Side agreements
That slows deals.
It scares buyers.
It lowers value.
When the company owns the patent, the sale is simple.
They buy the company.
They get the IP.
Clean.
Simple.
Predictable.
Those three words increase price more than most inventors realize.
Investors Look at Ownership First
If you ever raise money, structure beats storytelling.
You can have a great product.
A great pitch.
A great team.
But investors still ask:
Who owns the IP?
If the answer is:
“The founder owns it personally.”
They pause.
Because now the business doesn’t truly control its own engine.
Investors want the company to own what makes money.
Not borrow it from you.
So assigning the patent to the company makes funding smoother later.
Even if you’re not raising today.
Branding Works Better When Ownership Matches
There’s also a quiet branding piece here.
If your company sells the product, the company should own the product.
That alignment matters.
It keeps things clean:
- The brand
- The product
- The patent
- The contracts
All pointing to the same place.
When ownership is split, confusion grows.
When ownership is unified, growth feels easier.
People trust what looks organized.
Even when they can’t explain why.
Where People Usually Get Hurt
I see the same mistakes again and again.
People:
- License personally
- Manufacture personally
- Sign deals personally
- Collect revenue personally
Then later they try to fix structure.
But by then:
- Contracts exist
- Money moved
- Disputes started
Cleaning structure after damage is expensive.
It’s stressful.
It takes time you could spend building.
Structure works best when it’s boring and early.
Not exciting and late.
A Small Story From Real Life
I once spoke with an inventor who kept everything personal.
Patent in his name.
Deals in his name.
Factory contract in his name.
When the factory missed delivery, he pushed back.
They blamed him.
He sued.
They countersued.
Now it wasn’t business vs business.
It was person vs business.
His savings were at risk.
His stress went through the roof.
Not because the product failed.
But because structure failed.
All of it could’ve been avoided with one early assignment.
Assignment Is a Seatbelt
Most people don’t think about seatbelts when they drive.
They just click it.
They hope they never need it.
Assigning your patent to your company is like that.
You don’t do it because something is wrong.
You do it because one day something might be wrong.
And you’ll be glad you planned early.
When Personal Ownership Might Still Make Sense
To be fair, there are moments when personal ownership works.
Like when:
- You are still researching
- No contracts exist
- No vendors are hired
- No money moves
- No partners involved
Pure idea phase.
But the second you move toward:
- Manufacturing
- Licensing
- Sales
- Partnerships
Personal ownership becomes fragile.
It’s like biking without a helmet once traffic starts.
You can.
But it’s not wise.
Another Fear: “What If My Partners Take It?”
Some inventors worry:
“If the company owns it, partners might steal it.”
That’s not solved by personal ownership.
That’s solved by good agreements.
Operating agreements.
Share structure.
Control provisions.
Ownership fights come from bad governance, not from assignment itself.
The patent belongs where the business lives.
Control belongs in contracts.
Why This Helps You Sleep
People don’t talk about peace of mind enough.
When the patent sits in your company:
- Risk feels smaller
- Growth feels safer
- Stress drops
You stop worrying about losing your house over a supplier fight.
You stop worrying about personal lawsuits tied to business behavior.
That mental space helps you focus on building, not defending.
And inventors build better when they’re calm.
The Practical Answer Most of the Time
In most real-world situations:
You assign the patent to the company.
Because:
- It limits personal risk
- It keeps contracts clean
- It helps buyers later
- It supports funding
- It protects your life outside business
Not exciting.
Not flashy.
Just smart.
One Last Thought Before You Decide
Your invention is emotional.
Your business is practical.
Patents live better in practical places.
Let emotion drive creativity.
Let structure drive protection.
When those two work together, growth feels steadier.
Cleaner.
Less stressful.
And that’s what lets inventors keep building instead of constantly looking over their shoulder.