Guest post by Robert Cantrell

Can IP decisions always just be business – logical, factual?  Should they be? 

One of the first pieces of real world advice I received out of school when I joined the Army is the importance of positioning yourself to make decisions based on logic without undue emotional considerations.  A cascade of bad decisions could develop the moment you stepped of that course, for example, you based a decision on who to send on a mission on who you knew had a family versus who was actually best for handling that mission.

A cascade of bad decisions can also develop the moment you let other factors trump logical and factual decision-making in IP.  For example, the decision to litigate or not-litigate should be viewed from cold, hard logic considering the potential benefits, costs, and values to be gained or protected.  It should never be based on a desire to get even or on a reluctance to harm a friend – both emotionally based decisions that may or may not have logical justification.  You, after all, did not make the decision that put you at odds, and that leaves you only with the responsibility to produce the best possible outcome for yourself.

Image credit: HikingArtist.com