Terms of Use.

Welcome. These Terms of Use (the "Terms") are a binding agreement between you and Patent Prep Institute LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (the "Institute," "we," "us," or "our"), and govern your access to and use of our websites, applications, educational services, events, mentorship, courses, workshops, competitions, communities, and related offerings (collectively, the "Programs"), which include the Born to Invent and Young Inventors of America brands.

By accessing or using the Programs, you agree to these Terms. If you do not agree, do not use the Programs.

If the Participant is under 18, a Parent must read and agree to these Terms on the Participant's behalf, and that Parent accepts these Terms both individually and for the Participant.

The Programs are educational. We provide instruction, mentorship, invention-related education, innovation programming, and community-based learning.

We are not, and the Programs do not provide:

• a law firm or patent law firm, or any form of legal representation;
• legal, patent prosecution, or intellectual-property advice on which you should rely as a substitute for a licensed attorney or registered patent practitioner;
• investment advice, financial advice, or fiduciary services; or
• a guarantor of patentability, patent issuance, commercialization, admissions, investment, or business success.

Using the Programs does not create an attorney-client relationship, a registered-practitioner relationship, a fiduciary relationship, a partnership, a joint venture, an agency relationship, or a confidential legal advisory relationship. Information provided through the Programs is for educational purposes only. For legal protection of an invention, you should consult a licensed attorney or a patent practitioner registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office ("USPTO").

ABOUT THE NAME. "Patent Prep Institute" describes educational preparation. We are an independent education company. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or acting on behalf of the USPTO or any government agency.

Certain Programs include a "Publication Guarantee." Because this term is central to what we offer and what we do not, it is defined narrowly and precisely here and in your Enrollment Agreement.

How our Programs work. The Programs are educational. The Institute delivers curriculum, instructional materials, drafting templates, worked examples, recorded and live instruction, mentorship, and structured assignments that walk the Participant through each stage of preparing an inventor United States patent application. The Institute also provides instructional (not legal) review of the Participant's work product for educational completeness — that is, whether the Participant's draft contains the structural sections an inventor application requires, such as specification, claims, abstract, drawings where applicable, and the inventor's oath or declaration. The Participant — not the Institute — is the inventor, applicant, and author of the application. The Participant prepares the application, makes all substantive decisions about scope and content (including claim drafting), executes the inventor's oath or declaration (with a Parent acting as legal representative where required under 37 CFR § 1.64), and files the application with the USPTO. Where the Participant chooses to be represented before the USPTO, the Participant (or the Parent on the Participant's behalf) selects a registered patent practitioner; the Institute does not act as the Participant's representative before the USPTO.

What the Publication Guarantee means. For Programs that expressly include it, the Institute guarantees that — provided the Participant completes the Program, prepares the application using the Institute's curriculum and instructional support, and files it with the USPTO — the resulting inventor application will proceed to the USPTO's routine pre-grant publication under 35 U.S.C. § 122(b), which ordinarily occurs approximately eighteen (18) months after the application's earliest effective filing date. "Publication" in the Publication Guarantee refers solely to this routine USPTO pre-grant publication of the pending application.

What the Publication Guarantee does NOT mean. The Publication Guarantee is not a guarantee that a patent will be granted or issued; that the invention is patentable, novel, or non-obvious; that any claim will be allowed; that the application will not be rejected, abandoned, or challenged on the merits; or of any commercial, academic, admissions, or financial result. The Publication Guarantee is also not a commitment to provide legal advice, prosecute the application, or act as the Participant's representative before the USPTO. Patentability and issuance are determined solely by the USPTO and are outside our control.

For any patent application prepared in connection with a Program, the Participant is the inventor and applicant before the USPTO, and any patent rights belong to the Participant. The Institute claims no inventorship, ownership, or assignment of rights in the Participant's invention.

Inventor's oath or declaration. Each inventor application requires an inventor's oath or declaration under 35 U.S.C. § 115 and 37 CFR §§ 1.63 and 1.64. The Participant signs the oath or declaration as the inventor. Where the Participant is a minor or otherwise unable to sign under 37 CFR § 1.64, a Parent or legal representative signs a substitute statement on the Participant's behalf, identifying the relationship and the basis for signing under § 1.64. The Institute does not sign as inventor or as legal representative.

Correspondence address. The Participant (or, where the Participant is a minor, the Parent acting as the Participant's legal representative) is listed as the correspondence address of record with the USPTO and receives all USPTO correspondence directly, including filing receipts, notices of missing parts, restriction requirements, Office actions, and any other communications. The Institute is not listed as correspondence address of record and does not act as the Participant's representative before the USPTO.

No power of attorney. The Participant does not grant the Institute power of attorney before the USPTO. If the Participant wishes to be represented by counsel, the Participant (or Parent) may engage a registered patent practitioner of the Participant's own choosing, at the family's own expense. The Institute may, at the family's request, provide referrals to registered practitioners but is not responsible for the practitioner's services.

You may use the Programs only if you can form a legally binding agreement, you comply with these Terms, and — if the Participant is under 18 — a Parent consents and agrees on the Participant's behalf. We may decline or end participation at our reasonable discretion, subject to the refund terms of any applicable Enrollment Agreement.

You are responsible for:

• maintaining the confidentiality of account credentials;
• the accuracy of information you submit;
• supervising any minor using the Programs under your account.

You agree not to:

• misuse the Programs or interfere with their security;
• upload unlawful, infringing, or harmful material;
• harass, harm, or impersonate others; or
• attempt unauthorized access to any system or account.

Your inventions and submissions. Except as expressly agreed in writing, you retain ownership of the original inventions, work product, and intellectual property that the Participant independently creates ("Your Materials"). By submitting Your Materials, you grant us a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to host, store, review, analyze, display internally, and use Your Materials solely to operate, administer, evaluate, and provide instructional feedback within the Programs. We do not use Your Materials, or any personally identifiable Participant work, to train machine-learning or artificial-intelligence models — whether our own or those of third parties. We may use de-identified and aggregated statistical information derived from Program operations (for example, the number of applications filed, anonymous completion rates, or anonymized topical categories) to improve curriculum and Programs. You represent that you have the right to submit Your Materials.

Our content. Our curriculum, methods, materials, software, brands, and content ("Our Content") are owned by us or our licensors and are protected by intellectual-property laws. We grant you a limited, revocable, non-transferable license to use Our Content only for your own participation in the Programs. You may not copy, resell, or redistribute Our Content.

The USPTO's Inventorship Guidance for AI-Assisted Inventions (published February 13, 2024) requires that each claimed invention be the product of significant contribution by a natural-person inventor. The Participant represents that any application prepared in a Program reflects the Participant's own significant intellectual contribution to the claimed invention, and that any use of AI tools in the Participant's process was limited to assistance (such as research, drafting support, or brainstorming) and did not replace the Participant's inventive contribution. The Participant agrees to disclose AI use to the Institute if asked, and acknowledges that misrepresenting inventorship may affect patentability and may result in removal from the Program under Section 14.

You acknowledge and agree that:

• the Programs are collaborative educational environments involving invention, innovation, entrepreneurship, technology, design, and creative problem-solving;
• other students, mentors, instructors, companies, researchers, or third parties may independently create, develop, discuss, or pursue ideas, inventions, or concepts that are similar or identical to Your Materials;
• we and our affiliated persons may already possess, or may later independently develop, information or concepts similar to Your Materials; and
• similarity alone does not establish copying, misappropriation, breach of confidence, or infringement.

To the fullest extent permitted by law, you release us and our affiliated persons from any claim arising solely from the existence, independent development, discussion, or commercialization of similar or overlapping ideas, concepts, or inventions. Nothing in these Terms obligates us to monitor idea overlap, guarantee exclusivity, prevent parallel development, or adjudicate ownership disputes between participants.

Except for the limited Publication Guarantee described in Section 3 where it expressly applies, we do not guarantee patent issuance, patentability, novelty, publication, commercialization, admissions, investment, competition, business, or academic outcomes. Patent offices, journals, institutions, investors, and other third parties make their own decisions under their own standards.

Public disclosure of an invention can affect intellectual-property rights and may start or shorten legal deadlines in some jurisdictions. You are solely responsible for deciding whether and when to disclose an invention, when to seek formal IP protection, and whether to engage independent legal counsel. We strongly encourage you to consult a licensed attorney or registered patent practitioner regarding timing and protection.

We seek to maintain a respectful, professional educational environment and use reasonable care with participant materials. However, unless separately agreed in a signed writing, no absolute confidentiality or secrecy obligation exists, and collaborative learning inherently involves exposure to overlapping ideas and discussion. Exercise your own discretion before sharing highly sensitive or proprietary information.

Programs may include recordings, livestreams, photographs, presentations, showcases, demo days, publications, and online communities. By participating, you grant permission for the Institute to capture and use such materials for internal educational, instructional, and program-delivery purposes. Public and promotional use of an identifiable Participant — including names, likenesses, voices, testimonials, project summaries, and photographs — is separate and optional, and the Institute will make such public or promotional use of a Participant only where the Participant's parent or guardian has affirmatively opted in (for enrolled students, through the Media and Publicity Consent in the Enrollment Agreement). A Parent may withdraw consent for future public use at any time by written request to invent@patentprep.org. A separate media release may govern specific events.

Participants and families agree to act respectfully toward students, families, instructors, mentors, staff, and community members. We may suspend or remove any participant for harassment, abuse, discrimination, dishonesty, disruption, unlawful conduct, or violation of these Terms. Refunds following removal for misconduct are governed by the applicable Enrollment Agreement.

We may use third-party tools, including video conferencing, cloud storage, educational software, AI tools, payment processors, and communication platforms. We are not responsible for third-party services beyond our reasonable control, and your use of them may be governed by their own terms and policies.

Except for the express Publication Guarantee where it applies, the Programs are provided "as is" and "as available." To the fullest extent permitted by law, we disclaim all warranties, express or implied, including merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, non-infringement, uninterrupted access, accuracy, security, and reliability. Some jurisdictions do not allow certain warranty exclusions, so some of these may not apply to you.

To the fullest extent permitted by law, the Institute and its affiliates, and their respective officers, directors, employees, contractors, instructors, mentors, volunteers, advisors, and partners will not be liable for any indirect, consequential, special, incidental, punitive, or exemplary damages, or for lost profits, lost intellectual-property value, or lost business opportunities, arising out of or relating to the Programs.

Our total aggregate liability arising out of or relating to the Programs will not exceed the total amount you paid to the applicable Program in the twelve (12) months before the event giving rise to the claim.

Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion or limitation of certain damages, so some of the above may not apply to you. Nothing in these Terms limits liability that cannot be limited by law (for example, for gross negligence, willful misconduct, fraud, or personal injury where the law so provides).

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless the Institute and its affiliated persons from third-party claims arising out of Your Materials, your conduct, your violation of law or these Terms, your infringement of third-party rights, or disputes between participants — except to the extent caused by our own gross negligence or willful misconduct.

PLEASE READ — THIS SECTION AFFECTS YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS. This Section requires most disputes to be resolved by individual arbitration rather than in court, and waives class actions. You may opt out within 30 days (see below), and you keep the right to bring qualifying claims in small-claims court.

Informal resolution first. Before starting arbitration, you agree to contact us at invent@patentprep.org and give us 30 days to try to resolve the dispute informally.

Arbitration. Except for the carve-outs below, any dispute arising out of or relating to these Terms or the Programs will be resolved by binding individual arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association ("AAA") under its consumer arbitration rules in effect when arbitration is initiated. The arbitration will be conducted in the county where the Participant resides (or, at the Participant's election, by telephone, video, or written submission), consistent with the AAA's consumer rules on hearing location. If the Participant resides outside the United States, the arbitration will be held in Wilmington, Delaware. Judgment on the award may be entered in any court of competent jurisdiction.

Small-claims carve-out. Either party may bring an individual claim in small-claims court if it qualifies.

Class-action waiver. Disputes will be brought only in an individual capacity, and not as a plaintiff or class member in any purported class, collective, or representative proceeding. If this waiver is found unenforceable as to a particular claim, that claim will proceed in court, but the rest of this Section still applies.

30-day opt-out. You may opt out of this arbitration agreement by emailing invent@patentprep.org within 30 days of first accepting these Terms, stating your name and intent to opt out. Opting out does not affect the other provisions of these Terms.

The Programs may be accessed from outside the United States. You are responsible for compliance with your local laws. Information may be processed in the United States or other jurisdictions, as further described in our Privacy Policy.

We may update these Terms from time to time. For material changes, we will take reasonable steps to provide notice (for example, by posting an updated date or notifying account holders). Your continued use after an update takes effect constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms.

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Delaware, without regard to conflict-of-law principles, except that the Federal Arbitration Act governs Section 19. Subject to Section 19, the state and federal courts located in Wilmington, Delaware will have exclusive jurisdiction over any matter not subject to arbitration, and you consent to that jurisdiction and venue. Mandatory consumer-protection rights under the law of your home jurisdiction are not waived where they cannot lawfully be waived.

Patent Prep Institute LLC
invent@patentprep.org | www.PatentPrep.org

Neither party is liable for failure or delay in performance due to causes beyond its reasonable control, including acts of God, natural disasters, pandemics, epidemics, government action, war, terrorism, civil unrest, labor disputes, internet or utility failures, or USPTO system outages, provided the affected party gives reasonable notice and uses commercially reasonable efforts to resume performance. Force majeure does not excuse payment obligations already accrued.

Notices to the Institute must be sent to invent@patentprep.org with a copy by mail to the address in Section 23. Notices to you will be sent to the email or postal address associated with your account or enrollment. Notices are effective on delivery (for email and electronic delivery) or three business days after deposit in the mail (for postal delivery).

You may not assign or transfer these Terms or any rights under them without our prior written consent. We may assign these Terms to an affiliate or in connection with a merger, acquisition, reorganization, or sale of substantially all assets, without your consent. Any attempted assignment in violation of this Section is void.

If any provision of these Terms is held unenforceable, the remaining provisions remain in full effect, and the unenforceable provision will be modified to the minimum extent necessary to make it enforceable while preserving the parties' original intent.

Sections 2 (Educational Purpose), 3 (Publication Guarantee), 4 (Inventor, Oath, and Correspondence), 7 (Intellectual Property), 8 (AI-Generated Work and Inventorship), 9 (Independent Development), 10 (No Guarantee), 16 (Disclaimer of Warranties), 17 (Limitation of Liability), 18 (Indemnification), 19 (Dispute Resolution), 22 (Governing Law and Venue), 24 (Force Majeure), 25 (Notices), 26 (Assignment), 27 (Severability), this Section 28, and any other provision that by its nature should survive will survive termination or expiration of these Terms.

The Institute respects intellectual-property rights. If you believe content on our platforms infringes a copyright you own, please send a notice to invent@patentprep.org with subject line "Copyright Notice," identifying the work, the allegedly infringing material, your contact information, and a good-faith statement of your belief. We will review and respond as appropriate.