ClearstoneIP Wins “Patent Management Software of the Year” in 2026 LegalTech Breakthrough Awards

ClearstoneIP wins Patent Management Software of the Year

Clearstone FTO recognized for its forward-thinking approach to managing freedom to operate

ZURICH, SWITZERLAND, November 12, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- ClearstoneIP today announced that its freedom-to-operate (FTO) platform, Clearstone FTO, has won “Patent Management Software of the Year” in the 7th annual LegalTech Breakthrough Awards program conducted by LegalTech Breakthrough, a leading independent market intelligence organization that recognizes standout legal technology companies, products and services around the globe.

Clearstone FTO is the only platform purpose-built for patent clearance and FTO management. It serves as the system of record for in-house patent teams, R&D and outside counsel, capturing every claim-by-claim determination, rationale and open question in one place, organized around the product.

“Freedom-to-operate work has long lived in scattered spreadsheets, documents and email, which makes it hard to build on past analysis,” said Bryan Vaughn, Managing Director, LegalTech Breakthrough. “ClearstoneIP stood out for building AI directly into a dedicated system of record, so every review strengthens the next. It’s a thoughtful approach to one of patent practice’s most complex workflows, and we’re pleased to recognize them as Patent Management Software of the Year.”

Inside the system of record, Workflow AI narrows search results to the few patents that need an attorney’s full analysis in three phases: FirstPass™ triages results with suggested highlights, rationale and status; open-question analysis pinpoints the questions blocking a determination; and an in-app agent supports deep analysis of the patents that remain, from prosecution history and invalidity to design-arounds. AI suggests, and the patent team confirms every determination.

“As patent attorneys, we founded ClearstoneIP a decade ago because FTO deserved better than spreadsheets, email threads and static reports. FTO is a series of decisions, and we built the system that turns those decisions into institutional knowledge,” said Gabe Sukman, Founder and CEO of ClearstoneIP.

“Our clients shape what we build next, and their results drive us to keep innovating,” Sukman continued. Since FirstPass™ launched in early 2026, users have reported review time reductions of more than 50%.

“I have been doing freedom-to-operate investigations for over 20 years, and the workflow has always been the bottleneck,” said Edward Evans, Partner at Michael Best & Friedrich LLP and a FirstPass™ beta participant. “In our testing, FirstPass correctly identified the same high-risk patents our attorneys had manually flagged, across an entire search result set. We’ve been able to shift attorney time away from the mechanical work of annotation and toward the higher-level analysis that actually requires our judgment.”

The mission of the annual LegalTech Breakthrough Awards program is to recognize the innovators transforming the global legal landscape with breakthrough technology. The program conducts a comprehensive analysis of the companies redefining how legal services are researched, drafted, managed and delivered. From AI-driven research and drafting platforms and contract lifecycle management to eDiscovery, case and practice management, regulatory compliance, legal spend analytics and access-to-justice solutions, these innovations are enabling legal organizations to work more efficiently, serve clients better and shape the future of the legal profession.

Learn more about Clearstone FTO and FirstPass™ at ClearstoneIP.com.

About ClearstoneIP
ClearstoneIP was founded by patent attorneys to set the standard for freedom-to-operate management. As the definitive system of record for FTO, Clearstone FTO brings in-house patent teams, R&D and outside counsel into one shared environment that captures every clearance decision, rationale and open question. Built on a decade of perfecting FTO, the platform’s Workflow AI delivers review-ready analysis while keeping attorney judgment at the center. Every clearance builds on the last, turning institutional knowledge into a competitive asset that compounds over time. Learn more at ClearstoneIP.com.

About LegalTech Breakthrough
Part of Tech Breakthrough, a leading market intelligence and recognition platform for global technology innovation and leadership, the LegalTech Breakthrough Awards program is devoted to honoring excellence in legal technologies, services, companies and products. The LegalTech Breakthrough Awards program provides a forum for public recognition around the achievements of LegalTech companies and solutions in categories including Artificial Intelligence, Access to Justice, Case Management, Contract Management, Court Technology, Data and Analytics, eDiscovery, Legal Operations, Legal Research, Practice Management, RegTech and more. For more information visit LegalTechBreakthrough.com.

Tech Breakthrough LLC does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in our recognition programs, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with award designations. Tech Breakthrough LLC recognition consists of the opinions of the Tech Breakthrough LLC organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Tech Breakthrough LLC disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this recognition program, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

Nick Olsen
PR Return for ClearstoneIP
+1 312-432-9407
ClearstoneIP@pr-return.com