Before you abandon or stop renewing

Run this at each portfolio review, and before every renewal decision.

MediumAfter grantEnterpriseFounder

Pruning is healthy. Abandoning by accident is not, and the two look identical in a spreadsheet.

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.

Does it cover something you sell now, or plan to sell?The first and simplest test of relevance.
If yes: If no, continue down the list before deciding.
Would a competitor have to practise it to compete?A patent nobody needs to avoid protects nothing, however elegant.
If yes: If no, it is a strong pruning candidate.
Could you detect infringement of it?A process claim invisible in the product is difficult to police.
If yes: If not, ask what the patent is actually for.
Does it have licensing or defensive value?Some cases earn their keep in negotiations rather than in court.
If yes: Note who it would be useful against, specifically.
Does the specification disclose anything not yet claimed?If the parent is still pending, a divisional may be worth more than the parent.
If yes: Check before abandoning. After grant or refusal the option is gone.
Would anyone else pay for it?Assignment or sale is often better than lapse.
If yes: Offer it before abandoning, including to the inventors.
Is the family position consistent?Abandoning in one country while paying renewals elsewhere may or may not be deliberate.
If yes: Make the decision family-wide and record the reason.
Is the decision recorded, with a reason and an owner?An undocumented abandonment looks the same as a missed renewal in three years time.
If yes: Write one line explaining why. It is the difference between pruning and losing.

Every case should be kept for a reason someone can state, or dropped for a reason someone recorded.

Sources & further reading

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

Guide

Pruning a portfolio without losing anything you need

Case by case, against stated criteria, with three checks before anything is dropped - and with the decision and its reason written down.

Intermediate

CriticalCriticality

The patent died of neglect

Renewal fees are due from the expiration of the second year from the date of the patent, and each year after. Miss them and the patent ceases to have effect - usuall…

After grantBeginner

MediumScenario

The portfolio nobody pruned

What is likely to be true about those 61 cases?

After grantBeginner

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.