Before a funding round or an acquisition

Run this before the data room opens, not after the first question.

CriticalAfter grantFounderEnterprise

IP diligence rarely finds bad patents. It finds missing paperwork - and that is what delays closings and re-prices rounds.

Tick anything that is true. Each tick opens a short note on why it matters. Nothing you tick is sent anywhere - it stays in this browser tab.

Is there a signed assignment from every named inventor, for every filing?Rights flow from inventors and Indian assignments must be in writing and recorded.
If yes: List every inventor against every case. Every blank is a task, and it gets harder once people have left.
Do employment and consultancy agreements contain a present assignment of inventions?A promise to assign in future is weaker than an assignment, and consultants often have nothing at all.
If yes: Fix the templates, and get confirmatory assignments for past work.
Was any invention made before the company was incorporated?Pre-incorporation work belongs to the individuals unless it was assigned in.
If yes: Get a written assignment covering the pre-incorporation period specifically.
Are the assignments recorded with the Patent Office?Recordal is what makes title provable on the register.
If yes: Record them. It is administrative and cheap compared with explaining why it was not done.
Do you describe your position accurately in the deck?Saying patented when you hold a published application is a statement counsel will test.
If yes: Use patent pending or patent applied for until grant, everywhere - deck, website, packaging.
Have you had a freedom to operate view on the current product?Investors increasingly ask, and the answer no is worse than the answer we looked and here is what we found.
If yes: Have at least a scoped view, with the assumptions written down.
Are renewals and working statements up to date?A lapsed patent found in diligence is both a lost asset and a governance signal.
If yes: Run the post-grant housekeeping checklist first.
Is anything critical held only as know-how?Undocumented know-how is difficult to value and difficult to transfer.
If yes: Document it, restrict access, and decide whether it should have been a filing.

Almost every item here costs a few hours if done early and a re-priced round if done late.

Sources & further reading

The Patents Act, 1970 (consolidated to 1 August 2024) — Official IP India text

CriticalCriticality

Nobody wrote down who owns it

An invention belongs to its inventors unless something in writing moves it. Filing in the company's name does not by itself transfer anything. Ownership defects are …

Before filingIntermediate

CriticalIn simple words

Assignment

A transfer of ownership of a patent or an application from one person to another. In India it must be in writing, and it has to be recorded in the register to be eff…

Intermediate

Guide

What investors actually check about your IP

Chain of title, accuracy of what you have claimed publicly, freedom to operate, and whether anything critical exists only in someone's head.

Beginner

CriticalScenario

The consultant who still owned it

Who owns the invention, and who should have been named?

Before filingBeginner

Not sure whether this applies to your invention?

The honest answer usually needs someone to look at your actual disclosure, your timeline and the prior art. That is a conversation, not an article.

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Educational guidance, not legal advice. This material is published by Ragulika IP for general education and information. It is not legal advice, it does not create a professional-client relationship, and it is not a substitute for advice on your own facts. Patentability, infringement, prosecution strategy and every other IP outcome turn on the specific facts and on the law and Patent Office practice as they stand at the time you act. Please take professional advice before making a decision, and read the underlying provision or judgment before relying on any point stated here.

Last reviewed by Ragulika IP on 2026-08-23. Indian patent law and Patent Office practice change; check the position before you rely on it.