The field of intellectual property includes traditional areas such as patents, trade marks, copyright, registered designs, circuit layouts and plant breeders rights and the broader areas of domain names, business names, confidential information, trade secrets and know-how. 

Our clients recognised that IP assets are forming an increasingly large and valuable proportion of their businesses’ total assets.   This is so not just for our high tech clients but for our clients across the manufacturing, services, education, construction, energy, resources and environment, property and primary production industries.   Business transactions centred on or involving IP have grown dramatically in importance and sophistication.  Our clients look to us to assist them in identifying, capturing, protecting and exploiting their IP assets, in Australia and internationally. 

As a percentage of the economy, the IT industry is growing rapidly.  In addition to all the usual issues which confront businesses, the IT industry must frequently confront highly dynamic business situations brought about by the pace of industry and technology change and issues caused by laws struggling to keep pace with commercial developments.

Our clients value not only our technical expertise in the IP and IT industries but our commercial acumen, our experience in dealing not only in Australia but internationally and our focus on achieving business outcomes.

Our experience includes:

• advising start-ups, early stage businesses and mature stage innovators on the most suitable forms of corporate and business structuring and sources of funding
• advising on the capture and protection of intellectual capital including confidential information, trade secrets and misuse by (former) employees and others of that intellectual capital
• IP audits
• IP commercialisation including Australian and international licensing-in and licensing-out
• Trade mark registration & protection
• Computer and high technology licensing and other contracts
• Software development agreements
• Advising in relation to infringement, section 52 and passing off matters
• Advising IT industry participants on copyright related issues
• E-commerce and IT issues involving formation of on-line and other contract questions, jurisdiction issues, breaches of IP rights, etc.
• Registration of domain names
• Disputes in the on-line environment including cyber squatting and trade mark and copyright infringement issues
• Patents commercialisation and disputes