Cantor Colburn is #8 for design patents and #9 for utility patents out of all law firms in the U.S. In 2024, Cantor Colburn was responsible for 3,036 utility patents and 386 design patents granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Cantor Colburn has been a top 10 utility and design patent firm for more than a decade.

Cantor Colburn is proud to announce that it has earned Band 1 Recognition in Intellectual Property in Connecticut in the 2025 Chambers USA Guide. This recognition reflects our deep expertise across the full spectrum of IP services, the trust our clients place in us, and the strength of our team’s legal insight, technical knowledge, and commitment to achieving results.

Cantor Colburn is proud to sponsor The Cove Center for Grieving Children's Cove Kids' Classic Golf Tournament on June 13, 2025 in Middlefield, Connecticut. Trademark & Copyright Practice Chair Michelle Ciotola is board member of The Cove

Effective May 13, 2025, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) will accelerate Issue Dates for patents and new patents will issue approximately two weeks following the Issue Notification. Over the past two years, the USPTO has undertaken initiatives to modernize processing of U.S. patents and patent applications, including publishing electronic grants and Certificates of Correction (eGrants and eCofCs), establishment of Patent Center, and elimination of redundancies in the patent procurement process. All these efforts have reduced the time between grant notification and the issue date.

Cantor Colburn welcomes D. Alexander Tucker to the partnership. Mr. Tucker is a patent attorney in the firm’s Atlanta office. He joined the firm as an Associate in 2016. Managing Partner Philmore H. Colburn II said, "the partnership is confident that he will make even greater contributions to the firm’s success in his new role.”

Cantor Colburn is proud to sponsor the Atlanta Community Food Bank's 2025 Georgia Legal Food Frenzy.  

Cantor Colburn hosts the INTA Roundtable discussion, "Green Branding and Sustainability Claims: Navigating Trademarks in an Eco-Conscious World" on April 9, 2025 in our Hartford office. Trademark & Copyright Practice Chair Michelle Ciotola will host the discussion. Registration in advance is required.

Cantor Colburn LLP was named one of the “Top 10 Patent Firms and IP Practices," and recognized as an “Award Winning Law Firm 20254" by The Patent Lawyer Magazine for North America – Northeast.

An update to the USPTO fee schedule, effective January 19, 2025, introduces new Information Disclosure Statement (IDS) size fees and warrants reconsideration of IDS best practices, but ultimately does not change the duty of disclosure or the standard for determining if an item should be disclosed in an IDS. This Cantor Colburn Client Alert provides a summary of the IDS size fees, a link to the USPTO's guide, and insight on what this means to you.

Cantor Colburn is the #13 U.S. law firm for trademarks in 2024. Cantor Colburn was the law firm responsible for 1,256 trademark registrations granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. This is 58% growth from the previous year.

The source for this ranking is IDiyas, a comprehensive Inventor/Patent platform celebrating and supporting inventors worldwide, publishes an extensive database of USPTO records, including annual and year-to-date data on trademarks. utility, design, and plant patents.

In 2024, Cantor Colburn was the law firm responsible for 386 design patents granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The professionals in Cantor Colburn's Design Patents Practice bring years of experience counseling clients in deploying this critical, cost-effective tools for safeguarding the ornamental features of a product against unlawful imitation. Cantor Colburn has been a top 10 design patent firm for a decade. The ranking is from IDiyas' extensive database of USPTO data.

In 2024, Cantor Colburn was the law firm responsible for 3,036 utility patents granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Cantor Colburn’s patent prosecution team files a huge volume of domestic and foreign patent applications each year. Cantor Colburn has been a top 10 utility and design patent firm for more than a decade. The ranking is from IDiyas' extensive database of USPTO data.

The USPTO has announced fee increases and new fees for patents and trademarks to take place on January 18, 2025, for trademarks, and January 19, 2025, for patents. Cantor Colburn's Client Alert summarizes the significant changes, which necessitate careful budget considerations.  If you have questions about these fees and how to adjust your strategy to minimize their impact in the short term, please contact Cantor Colburn. If you are within the filing window for a submission and wish to take advantage of the lower fees in 2024, we would be happy to accommodate those instructions.

On December 4, 2024, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) withdrew a proposed rule regarding terminal disclaimer practice to overcome non-statutory double patenting rejections. The proposed rule would have required a patentee to declare that the patent with the terminal disclaimer will be enforceable only if the patent is not tied to and has never been tied to a patent in which any claim has been finally held unpatentable or invalid as anticipated or obvious. Now, the USPTO has withdrawn the proposed rule, citing “resource constraints” as its reason not to move forward. Read more in Cantor Colburn's Client Alert, USPTO Withdraws Proposed Rule Regarding New Terminal Disclaimer Practice.

She.Work published "Smart, Passionate, and Fearless in Intellectual Property Law," a profile of Michelle Ciotola. Michelle chairs Cantor Colburn's Trademark & Copyright Practice, successfully guiding clients worldwide through intellectual property law, ensuring their brands are secure and recognized.

Cantor Colburn has been named a Tier 1 firm in Hartford for Patent Law, Trademark Law, Copyright Law, Litigation - Patent, and Litigation - Intellectual Property Practice in the 2025 edition of Best Law Firms®.

The USPTO recently announced that its After Final Consideration Pilot Program 2.0 (“AFCP 2.0”) will expire on December 14, 2024.  The AFCP program started in 2013  as part of an effort by the USPTO to reduce the need for Requests For Continued Examination (RCE) by providing an opportunity to obtain consideration of narrowing claim amendments following a “final” Office Action. Because the program could possibly result in allowance and grant of a patent without requiring an additional fee, it has been a popular option for patent applicants.

Cantor Colburn is pleased to announce that Partners Michael Cantor, Todd Garabedian, and Steve Coyle are 2024 Super Lawyers and Ali Caless is a Super Lawyers Rising Stars. Only 5% of attorneys are selected to be Super Lawyers; only 2.5% of attorneys are selected to be Rising Stars. 

Co-Managing Partner of Cantor Colburn Michael Cantor is interviewed in “Innovation in Connecticut,” a new feature documentary from UConn’s Werth Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. “Innovation in Connecticut” will premiere Sept. 25, 2024, on Connecticut public television and will be available to stream online. Watch the trailer here.

Cantor Colburn is proud to sponsor The Cove Center for Grieving Children and Families Farmington Memorial Walk & Kids' Fun Run on September 15, 2024 in Farmington, Connecticut. Trademark & Copyright Practice Chair Michelle Ciotola is board member of The Cove, a safe place for kids to come together with other grieving kids to share their stories and their feelings with others.

Cantor Colburn was recognized by The Trademark Lawyer Magazine as a Top 10 Trademark Law Firm for 2024, North America - North East. Cantor Colburn’s Trademark & Copyright Practice is one of the busiest in the U.S., ranked among the top trademark firms for registrations issuances year after year. 

Dress for Success Hartford holds its annual Capital Catwalk event on October 28, 2024. Cantor Colburn is proud to be a returning Catwalk Sponsor and strongly supports Dress for Success’s mission of investing in the ability of a woman to become and remain gainfully employed.

Cantor Colburn is a Top 50 Best Performing Law Firm- Defendant and a Top 100 Most Active Law Firm-Defendant from the Patexia ANDA Intelligence Report 2024.

Cantor Colburn is proud to announce that the following attorneys are recognized as 2025 Best Lawyers: Christopher C. Boehm, David Bomzer, Alison Caless, Michael A. Cantor, Michelle P. Ciotola, Philmore H. Colburn II, Steven M. Coyle, Nicholas A. Geiger, Charles F. O'Brien, Roberta L. Pelletier, Leah M. Reimer, Ph.D., David E. Rodrigues, Ph.D., Bryan D. Zerhusen, Ph.D., Susan M. Zerull. Michael Cantor is a Best Lawyer Lawyer of the Year. 

Cantor Colburn Client Alert

The Federal Circuit recently discarded its long-established test for assessing non-obviousness as it relates to a challenged design patent and to design patent applications under examination at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The court replaced the test with a modified version of the Graham multi-factor analysis currently used for assessing the validity of a utility patent and the non-obviousness of utility applications. Read Cantor Colburn's Client Alert about this issue, including key takeaways.

Managing Intellectual Property has recognized seven Cantor Colburn attorneys in its 2024 IP Stars guide, which brings together the world’s foremost law firm and corporate intellectual property experts, allowing the wider community to benefit from their insight, experience and perspectives.