Van Hoven PC, Intellectual Property Lawyers
When the USPTO says no, Stefan Osterbur finds the path to yes.
Patent applications get rejected. It’s not a question of if, but when, and what happens next is what separates good prosecution from great prosecution. Stefan has built his practice around the hard cases: the Section 101 rejections that stop software innovations cold, the 103 obviousness arguments that bury mechanical inventions under prior art, the final office actions that other attorneys treat as dead ends. He prepares applications with these issues in mind so that resistance can be minimized or avoided entirely.
Before he ever drafted a patent claim, Stefan was designing them into steel. As a Safety & Crashworthiness Engineer at General Motors, he learned to think about electrical and mechanical systems the way inventors do, from the problem backward to the solution. That instinct never left. When a client walks him through an invention, Stefan doesn’t just hear the claims. He sees the engineering. He understands what makes it work, what makes it novel, and what the examiner is going to push back on.
Stefan’s expertise is recognized industry-wide. For nearly a decade, he co-chaired the AIPLA Patent Prosecution Boot Camp, the premier training program where hundreds of patent professionals learn advanced prosecution strategy. He’s also trained clerks and junior attorneys on the job, he’s the attorney who teaches other attorneys how to prosecute. Now he brings that same depth to the founders, engineers, and companies he represents.
His practice covers the full spectrum of patent prosecution: domestic and foreign utility and design applications, patent portfolio management, infringement and validity opinions, clearance analysis, and IP transactions. He has experience before federal courts, the USPTO in reexaminations and post-grant reviews, and advises on trade secrets and IP litigation strategy. Whether you’re a startup filing your first application or a mature company managing a global portfolio, Stefan approaches every engagement the same way.
He starts by listening. Before he thinks about claims strategy, Stefan wants to understand what you’ve built, why it matters, and where you’re trying to go. The patent strategy follows from the business strategy, never the other way around.