In the modern competitive market place, protecting your brand identity and other intellectual property rights is essential, and failing to take the necessary steps can prove costly or even fatal to the survival of your business.
RadcliffesLeBrasseur have developed an integrated team which not only understands the issues but is able to apply them a manner which best reflects the needs of each particular client.
Our experienced Intellectual Property team combines excellent legal skills with sound commercial acumen and can advise on all aspects of Intellectual Property law - both contentious and non-contentious.
The Intellectual Property team also provides specialist support in corporate and commercial transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, flotations, outsourcing and commercial contracts.
We often advise on the following areas:
Copyright and Designs
- subsistence and use of copyrights
- copyright in commercial and industrial materials and designs
- registration of designs
- unregistered design rights
- copyright in software
- licensing
- multimedia
- database protection
- registered Community designs
- unregistered Community designs
Trade Marks·
- trade mark searches, applications and registrations – nationally and internationally, including European Community trade marks
- oppositions and registry matters
- brand licensing
- advertising matters
- infringement and passing-off actions
Media and Entertainment
- publishing and authors’ rights agreements
- copyright and neighbouring rights
- television, radio and films
- music copyright and agreements
- advertising and sponsorship
- collecting societies
- business names
Multimedia
- electronic publishing
- intellectual property rights agreements
- e-commerce and CD Rom projects
Patents
- patent applications (UK, European and international)
- patent searches
- patent infringement
- patent know-how and technology
- licensing and joint ventures
- commercial exploitation of patents, inventions and know-how
- confidentiality agreements
Tax
- advice on the new tax regime for intellectual property and other intangible assets in the UK.
Examples of our relevant experience include:
Copyright and Designs
- advising on a wide range of licensing agreements in relation to copyright, particularly in connection with the licensing and distribution of computer software
- advising on the setting up of an international distribution network relating to computer software
- advising on design applications for a Canadian company
- acting for an IT supplier in relation to the supply of a specialist system to companies which were merging, including the licensing of copyright and other intellectual property rights in the specialist system
- advising on the terms and conditions relating to the operation of a website and the protection of intellectual property rights in the site, and the obtaining of consent in relation to third parties’ rights in materials used on the site
- negotiating a contract for the provision of special services for setting up a website
- advising on an agreement relating to the accreditation of overseas bodies for the purpose of professional examinations, including the protection of the accrediting body’s intellectual property rights in relation to such examinations
Trade Marks
- acting for a South African company in maintaining its trade mark portfolio
- dealing with the registration, administration and maintenance of a multi-national portfolio of trade marks for a South African group of companies
- carrying out a Madrid protocol trade mark registration throughout the rest of Europe for a US company
- dealing with a Community trade mark (CTM) application, and the objections lodged against this application, for a Houston-based company
- dealing with trade mark work for a Canadian company
- handling innumerable other UK applications, renewals and assignments, and CTM applications
- advising on registered user agreements in relation to trade marks
- advising on the exhaustion of trade mark rights and the parallel imports of branded medical goods
Media and Entertainment
- preparing a licensing agreement relating to the use within the EU of a video for the marketing of household products
- preparing an agreement for the provision of specialist services in connection with the making of a film
- acting for a publishing house on the purchase and sale of publication rights, trade marks, goodwill and the titles to subscription magazines
Multimedia
- negotiating a joint venture agreement between a company providing training services and the producer of a CD-Rom
- advising on agreements with authors and subscribers in respect of journals published on the internet
Patents
- handling patent work for an orthopaedics company
- advising an Illinois-based multi-national company on its patents
- dealing with various patent issues on behalf of a quoted company
- advising an individual on the patentability of an IT-related publication
- carrying out a review of the intellectual property policy of a hospital trust.