Gastle

Jim Gastle, P.Eng

Registered Patent Agent

JIM is a registered Canadian and U.S. Patent Agent. He discovered patents during a seminar in a fourth year Mechanical Engineering design course in the 80’s. He was an avid inventor at the time, and the early discussion of patents was like a bolt of lightning. He was hooked. He immediately went about learning how to prepare a patent application for his project-of-interest at the time, and hand delivered it to the Canadian Patent Office.
Soon after, Jim started his training in the patent profession. Meanwhile, he developed a line of animal transport systems for veterinary clinics and convinced a major U.S. veterinary medical catalogue to feature his products. A strong response from the catalog led to a stream of product leaving Canada for international markets, leading to what Jim describes in today’s tech language as “product market fit”. However, Jim wasn’t yet finished with patents, and for the ensuing 30+ years has represented corporate, academic and independent clients in a wide range of scientific fields, having managed portfolios for a number of multinational clients along the way.
He continues to represent select clients in patent preparation and prosecution and collaborates closely U.S. counsel to explore lesser-known aspects in U.S. prosecution which might be beneficial to his clients, in expanding or optimizing patent scope and value in growing patent families.

Jim became interested in the opportunities and benefits of legal-tech and is co-founder of TerrifioTM, which offers a suite of collaborative on-line tools, to address some of the pain points he sees in the field of IP, for IP professionals and their clients alike. One of those tools, called MarkrTM, which helps patent owners launch and manage a VPM program, which can in some cases provide significant (and largely unknown) upsides to valuable patent portfolios.   Jim has written on a range of topics relevant to his interest in IP and Terrifio.  Jim is an active member of the Intellectual Property Institute of Canada, serving on a number of its committees. Jim is also a member of the Association of Professional Engineers of Ontario, the American Intellectual Property Association and the American Bar Association.

In his spare time, Jim enjoys jogging, boating, and is looking forward to developing his skills with kite boarding and mastering his DJ mixing board.
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James Gastle, P. Eng is a registered Patent Agent in both Canada and the United States, graduated from Mechanical Engineering at Queen’s University in 1984 and began a five-year internship in patent agency, including one year at the IP department of a Canadian forest products company and four years at a national law firm. He later acted as Patent Agent counsel for leading firms specializing in intellectual property.

In 1989, he continued his training on a freelance basis while developing and marketing two proprietary product lines. With a partner, Jim launched VETERINARY DESIGNED INSTRUMENTS INC. to design and market animal transport systems for veterinary clinics across North America. His products were featured in a major veterinary medical catalogue in the United States. Jim was later involved in the design and manufacture of a compact rescue unit. Numerous patents now adorn the United States Patent Office from these efforts.

Jim understands the needs of inventors – he is one.  His current interest is in the field of SAAS platforms and is cofounder of terrifio.co.uk, offering online lead interaction tools to develop engaging lead collection campaigns across all online and offline channels.

For the past thirty years, Jim has represented corporate, academic and independent clients in a wide range of scientific fields. His firm, GASTLES, has managed the Canadian patent portfolios, for several multinationals in the automotive, industrial lighting and hospitality fields.

Jim is an active member of the Intellectual Property Institute of Canada, serving on a number of its committees. Jim is also a member of the Association of Professional Engineers of Ontario.

In his spare time, Jim enjoys jogging, boating, and is looking forward to developing his skills with kite boarding and mastering his DJ mixing board. Jim is an active volunteer and supporter of several community organizations in the Peterborough Ontario area.