Gender inventorship equity in patent prosecution

Abstract

There are pervasive gender gaps throughout the patent process. Here, we add to the literature by providing an in-depth analysis of gendered outcomes across each stage of patent prosecution. We show that female inventors are more likely to face rejection, experience unsuccessful appeals, and exhibit lower responsiveness to rejections than male counterparts. Not only are women less likely to patent their invention, but each stage of examination individually contributes to a lower aggregate grant rate for female inventors. Our research finds that, unlike small and large entity industry equivalents, university-filed patent applications demonstrate increased gender parity in allowance rates and continued prosecution after rejection. Moreover, small entities—patent applicants with typically smaller budgets—are either more than or equally likely to exhibit gender parity when compared to larger firms. We anticipate this study to be a starting point for a more sophisticated discussion around closing gender gaps in patenting and STEM.