Orthopedic Design & Technology: Five Simple Intellectual Property Steps Medtech Teams Often Skip

Stan Gibson, partner and chair of the Patent Litigation Group with Jeffer Mangels & Mitchell LLP, recently authored an article in Orthopedic Design & Technology, “Five Simple Intellectual Property Steps Medtech Teams Often Skip.”

With 2026 underway, the medtech boom is accelerating rapidly, but too many developers and manufacturers alike treat intellectual property (IP) like an afterthought. While they may nail the prototype and trials, they often skip basics like a quick provisional filing before that investor pitch. Suddenly a competitor copies their design abroad or a hidden patent blocks their launch. In this article, Gibson cuts through the noise to spotlight five everyday IP moves that slip past busy teams, based on real headaches such as lost foreign rights from early demos and freedom to operate (FTO) gaps that fuel device delays.

You can read the full article here: Five Simple Intellectual Property Steps Medtech Teams Often Skip