Patents and R&D
Patents
Brilliant ideas must be rewarded. In order to protect the efforts and the ingenuity of inventors, innovative solutions can be protected through patents.
A patent is an exclusive right that allows you to protect inventions that can be industrially applied. The patent holder can forbid third parties from using the invention without his prior consent for a period of 20 years.
First and foremost, the invention must be genuine. An invention should provide a technical solution to a technical problem or makes a technical contribution to the state of the art. To obtain a patent, your invention must be new, inventive, industrially applicable, and lawful.
Be careful! Patentable inventions must be new, meaning that they must be kept secret until you file for a patent. If you speak to commercial partners or prospect about your invention, you could lose your patentability. Hence, it is important to consult your legal advisor in the early process of invention.
What do we do?
Filing a patent hastily can lead to trouble down the road. A patent costs money and funds are limited for anyone. You cannot get a patent everywhere, so the selection of the countries in which you will file a patent is of the utmost importance. We will assist you in devising an optimal protection strategy based on your needs and your budget.
Our patent attornies will assess the patentability of an invention. If protectable, we will register and manage your patent applications and handle all communication with the patent offices and reply to the examiner’s comments. We will also assist you in the drafting and the legal aspect of the commercialisation of your patent.
In addition to filing, we assist you to formulate a patent protection strategy, manage your patent portfolio and build the necessary legal framework. We believe that patent protection is only one of the first steps in the commercialization process of your invention. We can ensure that your rights are protected before, during and after filing.
Our added value
IFORI also does much more than look at your patent portfolio with blinders on. While inventions are strictly speaking only patentable, much of them can be combined with other intellectual property rights. Advisory goes beyond filing a patent and leaving it at that.
We will look at ways to surround your patents with other rights to further strengthen the protection of your invention, even beyond the expiration date of your patent. This includes the protection of your know-how, connected trademarks, copyright protected accompanying documents, etc.
Research & Development
Research and development (or “R&D”) processes are often complex, unpredictable, and time-consuming processes with high investments and risks. The stakeholders in those processes have often very different needs and opposed interests. And it is always easier to agree on specific issues prior to their occurrence.
As a result, R&D contracts are often very long, technical, and often not very well-drafted, which each party tries to renegotiate in their favour. This often gives rise to ambiguous and ofttimes contradictory clauses in the same contract. Hence it is important to have a trusted and experienced partner to advise you when entering into an R&D contract. Oftentimes essential clauses, such as IP allocation, licensing or allocation of the risks are not befitting of the needs of the R&D project or do not reflect the intention of parties properly, with disastrous results in the long run as an outcome.
What do we do?
As a niche law firm, we draft and review R&D contracts from all natures and sectors. We advise you on “must-have” and “nice to have” clauses. We can assist you in negotiations and advise you on how to optimally protect your existing intellectual property and the IP that is created through the R&D as well as IP that is created as a by-product of the R&D process.
Our added value
We work at the intersection of tech, business and law, which gives us a head start on our competitors when it comes to R&D Contracts. Given our involvement in our client’s company we think one step ahead of the contract. We make sure it fits your needs and the working of your company perfectly. As a more external part of the negotiation process, we are in a unique place to provide you with an honest and objective feedback on the opportunity and possible risks of entering the contract.
