The concept of intellectual property refers to a common name for all branches of intellectual creator's rights, that is, as a collective term for two branches of rights: copyright and industrial property rights. Copyright includes scientific, literary, musical and art works, while related rights include performances by performers, phonograms and broadcasts of television and radio. Industrial property covers forms of protection such as trade marks, industrial design, geographical indications and designations of origin, and the topography of semiconductor products. A particularly important form of industrial property is patent. The patent shall provide a set of exclusive rights to a legal or natural person on the basis of an established invention. The community has a need for continuous economic growth, and in order to achieve economic growth, continuous technical and technological progress is necessary, which is why inventions play a significant role. The patenting process requires quite high costs, and the process itself is a quite lengthy and complex process. The patent as an intellectual property form shall grant the owner the exclusive right to produce, use, sell or market a patent protected invention and the period of time shall be limited to 20 years from the date of filing the patent application. Unfortunately, the number of patents in Croatia is decreasing today, although throughout history Croatia has had a large number of world-renowned inventors. This is due to low investment in R & D, high patenting costs and brain drain.