Fraudulent Invention Development Company BannedJune 6, 2018

Last month, the Federal Trade Commission announced the settlement of a lawsuit against an invention development company which permanently enjoins the company from further business due to fraudulent and deceitful conduct with inventors. Scott Cooper and his companies, World Patent Marketing and Desa Industries, Inc., used bogus success stories to get clients to pay thousands of dollars for patenting and marketing their inventions. Many of their customers ended up with nothing to show for their trust and payments to Cooper, and some lost their life savings.

According to the FTC, the defendants used threats, intimidation, gag clauses, and delays against their customers, who cumulatively were injured in the amount of nearly $26 million. The defendants agreed to pay back slightly over $1 million, which is all that is left of the money paid by the defrauded customers. The defendants’ records indicate that only approximately 10% of the money they received from clients was used for patent agent fees and marketing. The litigation is entitled Federal Trade Commission v. World Patent Marketing, Inc., et al., filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, case no. 17-cv-20848.