Protecting and enforcing intellectual property rights
Our experienced intellectual property solicitors advise and support commercial businesses with all aspects of intellectual property including audits, branding advice, protection of ideas and dispute resolution.
Intellectual property, such as literary and artistic works, designs, brand names and images used in commerce are protected by law under copyright, patents, designs and trademarks, but while some types of protection apply automatically, you must apply for more complex types of protection.
At Anthony Collins Solicitors we work with social-business organisations to advise them on all aspects of intellectual-property law, from ensuring protection to resolving disputes. Intellectual property is a valuable asset to any organisation, ensuring it is protected prevents it from being stolen or copied.
We will work with you to identify your core intellectual property and to understand how it is used within your organisation. We can then advise you on strategies to protect, manage, develop and commercially exploit your intellectual-property rights.
It is important that you ensure your intellectual property is protected and do not assume it is covered automatically. Having the right type of intellectual property protection helps you to stop people from stealing or copying your intellectual property, such as:
- The names of products or brands.
- Inventions.
- The design or look of products.
- Things your organisation writes, makes or produces.
Our intellectual property (IP) service
At Anthony Collins Solicitors we regularly work with you in the social-business sector to help you protect your intellectual property and to support you to implement strategies to minimise the risk of future disputes. Our intellectual property services include:
- Protecting brand assets – including your organisation’s name and research property, advising on copyright and licensing laws and ensuring protection of brand assets and other IP.
- Intellectual property audits – identifying your rights, how these are used and how they might be at risk.
- Technology-supplier advice – finalising the standard terms and conditions you offer to customers or resellers, advising on negotiated contracts, and wider business advice such as finance, joint ventures and business sale, purchase and merger.
- Advice for Buyers of ICT – working with your team to negotiate contracts for business-critical systems or services. Contracts could include server hosting and other outsourcings, buying a new e-commerce website, service-level agreements, change controls, and buying business management software.
- ICT risk and compliance advice – helping you build compliance and risk management into your business, with advice on website regulations, defamation, confidentiality, discrimination, consumer law, data protection and your contractual obligations.
- Branding advice – providing guidance on trademark or domain-name registrations, brand launches or re-branding exercises and preparing comprehensive enforcement strategies, including action against spite sites and internal education policies.
- Protection of ideas – advising on confidentiality agreements, registration of rights such as patents, designs and trademarks, and how to protect your unregistered rights such as copyright and database rights.
- Exploitation of your rights – preparing licences, assignments and distribution agreements of your IP rights, and recommending ways to increase royalty or other revenue streams.
- Development of your IP – advising on internal R&D, collaboration agreements and joint ventures with third parties to develop and expand your rights.
- Enforcement of your IP – preventing the infringement of your rights or resolving ownership disputes, whether by negotiation or through formal proceedings
We have been recognised for the work we do
ADA: National College for Digital Skills
We supported ADA, a social enterprise, with education issues, and law advice on procurement, construction, property and funding.
