Intellectual property differs from other property in that rights do not arise from use alone. A business that has traded under a name for years can lose it to whoever registers first. Filing early matters more than most owners expect.
Trade secrets work the other way: they are protected without registration, but only while the owner keeps them under proper safeguards. Information allowed to circulate freely stops being protected.
We handle searches before filing, the applications themselves, responses to the registrar, and proceedings against infringers.
What this group covers
- Trademarks: clearance searches, applications, and renewals kept on schedule.
- Trade secrets: confidentiality measures and agreements with staff and suppliers that can actually be enforced.
- Patents, for inventions with an inventive step and industrial application.
- Petty patents, for improvements on existing technology — a shorter examination and a shorter term.
What to do before a launch
- Check that the intended name or mark is not identical or similar to one already registered for the same class of goods.
- File before launch, not after the product has become known.
- For an invention, file before any public disclosure — disclosing first can destroy the novelty the application depends on.
- Put confidentiality agreements in place with manufacturers, contractors and staff before technical information is handed over.
- State clearly in the employment or engagement contract that work created belongs to the business.
When there is an infringement
- Preserve the evidence before alerting the other side: images of the goods, the online listing, a receipt for a sample purchase, and the date found.
- Send a cease and desist notice, which resolves many matters without proceedings.
- Notify the online marketplace to have the listing removed, which is usually faster than court.
- Bring civil proceedings for damages, and criminal proceedings where the law provides for them.
This page is general information, not advice on your situation. Whether a particular mark or invention can be registered depends on a search in each case.