IP&IT

Intellectual property (IP) refers to creations of the mind such as inventions, literacy and artistic works, and symbols, names and images used in commerce (an idea, invention, trade secret, process, program, data, formula, patent, copyright, or trademark or application, right, or registration relating thereto. See www.wipo.int).

Our Clients’ most valuable assets are often their IP and associated products and technologies. Law protects IP by, for example, patents, copyright and trademark, which enable people to earn recognition or beneficial benefits from what, they invent or create. In other words, IP refers to the ownership of idea and control over the tangible or virtual representation of those ideas. Use of another person’s IP may or may not involve royalty payments or permission, but should always include proper credit to the source.

The Firm deals with:

• copyright – refers the exclusive right to produce or reproduce (copy), to perform in public or to publish an original literary or artistic work (the definition of ‘literary work’ includes computer programs or other electronically stored information). Copyright is the legal right granted to an author, composer, playwright, publisher, or distributor or exclusive publication, production, sale, or distribution of a literary, musical, dramatic, or artistic work;

• cybersquatting or domain name disputes;

• data protection law – refers to the protection of information (such as records about private people) in a computer from being copied or used wrongly; to access to personal data; to prevent: processing which is likely to cause distress or damage, processing for the purposes of direct marketing; evaluation by automatic decision taking, compensation if certain requirements are not complied with and have inaccurate data rectified or erased;

• geographical indication;

• industrial design;

• infringement (e.g. trademark infringements, copyrights infringements etc.), injunction and compensation;

• patent – it is an official document showing that a person has the exclusive right to make and sell an invention; it refers to an exclusive privilege granted to an inventor to make, use or sale an invention for a set number of years. Normally, no one company can retain a monopoly over a product or service because this is considered to economically harmful to society. But as a financial incentive to potential investors, the state grants a temporary monopoly to that inventor through the issuance of a patent;

• trademark – it is a distinctive name, phrase, symbol, design, picture, or style used by a business to identify itself to consumers. Trademarks cover letters, or numbers in various combinations, logos, shapes and colours in distinctive designs; also sounds (as in advertising jingles).

The Firm’s IP practice offers our Clients legal services for enforcing, defending, commercializing, exploiting and acquiring patents, copyrights, trade secrets and trademarks.