PRACTICE AREAS
PATENTS
A patent is an intellectual-property contract between the right holder and a government agency allowing the right holder to exclude others from commercially using the protected technology, without his/her authorization, for 20 years from the filing date of a patent application. In exchange, the right holder enriches public knowledge by providing a detailed description of the new technology.
Our goal is to provide a patent portfolio that will include strong and enforceable patents that will leverage your business.
Our team will study your technology and create a patent portfolio securing your rights in technologies that cannot be kept secret or can be reverse engineered. We will help you decide on the most cost-effective international patent filing strategy in order to direct your financial resources and effort only to markets relevant to your business.
UTILITY MODELS
Utility model protection is available in some countries, for example, in China and in Germany. A utility model is somewhat similar to a patent with the following main distinctions:
Utility model protection can be sought for products only (as opposed to methods and processes).
The requirements for obtaining a utility model are less stringent than for patents and in most cases utility models are registered without being examined at all.
The term of protection for utility models is 10 years, which is shorter than for patents (20 years).
The registration process is often significantly simpler, cheaper and shorter in length than that of patents.
On a case by case basis, we may recommend utility models as a supplemental or alternative IP protection.
INDUSTRIAL DESIGNS
While a patent protects the functional aspects of a product, an industrial design (design patent) protects the appearance of the product.
Similar to patent protection, the right holder of a registered industrial design has the right to exclude others from commercially making, selling or importing articles having a design which is a copy, or substantially a copy, of the protected design.
Industrial designs are used to protect various industrial products such as packages, containers, fashion items and jewelry, but they are also increasingly being used to protect the outer appearance of medical, mechanical and electronic devices or their parts.
The functionality or use of a product can be protected by a patent, while the appearance of the same product can be protected by a design patent. Depending on your intended products, our team will often recommend incorporating design patents into your IP portfolio.
TRADEMARKS
Trademarks are all about protecting your brand, which identifies and distinguishes your products or services from those of others.
We provide full professional services for trademarks worldwide, including assisting in constructing trademark strategy and selection of names/logos, conducting a trademark availability search, filing and prosecution of the marks, and registration of the trademark.
PRE-INVESTMENT IP DUE-DILIGENCE
Prior to investing in a company, potential investors approach us to review the company’s patent portfolio. Their concerns typically relate to the patentability of the company’s intended technology and to the scope and strength of the company’s IP. Another concern is the risk of infringing third party patents. We provide investors with a go/no-go prior-investment preliminary consultation as well as a more comprehensive IP analysis. We also provide recommendations on how to strengthen the patent portfolio post-investment.