1.How do I approach him with this idea?
first get online and find a non-disclosure agreement. You can probably get one from a site found thru google for a couple of bucks.
2.Do I contact publications with the ad for my product,or let him do all the work and sign a contract for a percentage of the royalties???
Up to you. Do a basic business plan first. Business Plan Pro is pretty good software.
3.Do I need a lawyer?
Sorry - yes. If your idea is patentable, you can get a "provisional patent" for a few hundred bucks - this gets you some time to file the actual patent and gets you protection of "patent pending". But a real patent will be very expensive - you need to make sure your idea is truly worth it before starting down THAT road.
The "mail it to yourself" will help if you are trying to DEFEND a patent infringement lawsuit - but other than that, I don't think it gives you much protection.
I personally don't trust those "we'll file your patent for you" kind of places...
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