Intellectual Property

Protecting your business' property is always important and its Intellectual Property is no different. Intellectual Property can take many forms including:

• Trade Marks (both registered and unregistered);
• Confidential Information (including matters such as customers and suppliers);
• Copyright;
• Know-how.

The ways in which you can protect your Intellectual Property can be varied and may include, for example registration in the case of Trade Marks. How you protect your Intellectual Property will depend upon your business and the nature of the Intellectual Property in question. We can assist in the process by advising on both the technical and the practical ways in which you can protect these valuable assets.

In addition, it may be the case that you are seeking to exploit Intellectual Property that you have created, perhaps by allowing others to use it. In order to protect your position you should consider carefully how this process is to work. This is likely to raise important questions such as: are you going to license your Intellectual Property or completely transfer it?; is there to be a one-off fee or on-going payments on a regular basis?; and what is to happen if the person using your Intellectual Property breaches the term of your licence?

Also, Intellectual Property may arise in perhaps unexpected circumstances. All of the following can give rise to questions as to who owns the rights to the Intellectual Property created:

• Website Design;
• Commission of bespoke Computer Programme;
• Preparation of new Training Materials.

Before you enter into an agreement with a third party where something new, bespoke or unusual is to be created, you should be thinking about what is to happen to any Intellectual Property created.

Actons can assist in all the legal issues arising in connection with Intellectual Property including creation, protection and exploitation.

For further information, please contact Simon Dakin or one of the team on 0115 9 100 200 or email enquiries@actons.co.uk.