This is the handout for my talk to Manchester Trainee Solicitors Group on 29 April 2015. It highlights the main points of my presentation and provides space for attendees to make their own notes.

1. Introduction to Intellectual Property for Commercial Lawyers
Jane Lambert
4-5 Gray’s Inn Square
London
WC1R 5AH
Tel 020 7404 5252
Jlambert@4-5.co.uk
http://nipclaw.blogspot.co.uk
1. Definition of Intellectual Property
Intellectual property (“IP”) is the umbrella term for
the bundle of rights that protect investmentin
intellectual assets.
Examples include:
- Patents
- Copyrights
- Trade marks
- Registered designs
- Unregistered design rights
- Obligations ofconfidence
- Rights to bring an action for passing off.
2. Intellectual assets
Intellectual assets (“IA”) are the subjectof IP:
things that give one business a competitive
advantage over all others.
IA can be grouped into the following categories:
- Brands
- Designs
- Technology, and
- Works of art and literature.
3. Policy
To balance conflicting public interests of
incentivizing innovation and creativity while
promoting competition and freedom to trade.
4. Legal Framework
Agreementon Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual
Property (“TRIPs”) requires WTO member states
to comply with Paris,Berne and Rome Conventions
and the Washington Treaty and to provide
protection for copyrights, trade marks,patents,
geographical indications,semiconductor
topographies and undisclosed information.

2. TRIPs is implemented in the UK by the following
statutes:
- Registered Designs Act 1949
- Patents Act 1977
- Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988,and
- Trade Marks Act 1994.
Unofficial consolidations ofthose statutes can be
downloaded from IPOwebsite at
https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/intell
ectual-property-office
TRIPs is also implemented by:
- Council Regulation (EC) No 207/2009 of 26
February 2009 on the Communitytrade mark
(“CTM regulation”);and
- Council Regulation (EC) No 6/2002 of 12
December 2001on Communitydesigns
(“Communitydesign regulation”).
Unofficial consolidations ofthose regulations can
be downloaded from the OHIM website.
5. Institutions
Intellectual Property Office:
https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/intell
ectual-property-office
European PatentOffice:
https://www.epo.org/index.html
Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market:
https://oami.europa.eu
World Intellectual Property Office:
http://www.wipo.int/portal/en/index.html
6. Enforcement
Bootlegging,counterfeiting,piracyand deliberate
copying of registered designs are offences which
are enforced by local authority trading standards.
All other actions give rise to civil proceedings.
Proceedings are broughtin the ChanceryDivision
or County Court hearing centres such as
Manchester,Leeds,Liverpool and Preston where
there is a ChanceryDistrictRegistry.
Within the ChanceryDivision there are two
specialistpanels ofjudges known as:
- Patents Court
- Intellectual Property Enterprise Court(“IPEC”)
IPEC has a small claims track for claims up to
£10,000 where costs are small.
ADR is available:
- IPO opinions for patentdisputes
- Uniform domain-name dispute resolution
Policy for generic top level domains
- Nominet’s dispute resolution policyfor .uk
domain name disputes
- WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Centre
- IPO