About IP Law
With the laws around Intellectual Property and Information Technology changing all the time, keeping pace is hard enough. But knowing the law isn’t enough. You need to know what those changes are going to mean for your clients. The big picture, the fine detail, the impact and the next steps.
Copyright
Practical information about copyright, moral rights, performers’ rights and rights in performances. Get precedent copyright assignments and licences here.
Trade marks
Practical information about trade marks, passing off, geographical indications and anti-counterfeiting. Get precedent trade mark assignments and licences here.
Patents
Practical information about patents and supplementary protection certificates. Get precedent patent assignments and licences here.
IP disputes
Get guidance on strategic and practical steps for dealing with IP disputes, including ways of trying to avoid them in the first place. Our case analysis highlights points from judgments so you can be confident at work.
Topics We Cover
Latest IP News
The European Commission has published a draft delegated regulation establishing rules for EU design-related intellectual property procedures managed...
Law360: Some of the biggest names in literature and journalism can pursue their claim of direct copyright infringement against OpenAI based on the...
This week's edition of IP weekly highlights includes: a hand-picked summary of news analysis, updates and new content from the world of IP. These...
Law360, London: The Court of Appeal refused on 23 October 2025 to revive six Adidas trade marks protecting the position of its famous three-stripes...
Law360, London: Supermarket chain Iceland lost its application to revoke a kebab meat supplier's trade mark on 23 October 2025 when a London appeals...
Latest IP Practice Notes
Artificial intelligence (AI) resource kitThis resource kit contains a list of the key practical guidance available across Lexis+® UK that deals with...
Trade marks—UK/EU comparisonBackgroundThis Practice Note provides a high-level summary of key themes of comparison between the UK and EU in relation...
How to draft a letter of claim in an IP disputeWhat is a letter of claim?A letter of claim puts an alleged infringer on notice that court proceedings...
Unconventional trade marksA UK trade mark is defined by section 1 of the Trade Marks Act 1994 (TMA 1994) as any sign which is capable:•of being...
Absolute and relative grounds for refusal to register a UK trade markAbsolute and relative groundsA trade mark’s essential function is to be a badge...
Latest IP Precedents
Precedent instructions or brief to counsel[IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE[BUSINESS AND PROPERTY COURTS [OF ENGLAND AND WALES OR IN [insert...
Research and development agreement (long form)This Agreement is made on [insert date] (the Commencement Date) between the following parties (each a...
Collaboration agreementThis Agreement is made on [date]Parties1[insert name] [of OR a company incorporated in [England and Wales] under number [insert...
Executing documents—training materialsThese Training Materials provide an introduction to execution and cover the principal areas of executing simple...
Copyright policyIntroductionThe purpose of this copyright policy is to provide guidance to employees and other personnel about copyright as a right,...
Latest IP Q&As
Featured IP content
Introduction to passing off
Introduction to passing offUnlike many other countries, the UK has no unfair competition law. Brand owners seeking to prevent competitors from...
Trade mark infringement—UK
Trade mark infringementRights conferred by a trade mark registrationThe registration of a trade mark gives the owner the exclusive right to prevent...
Copyright—authorship and ownership
Copyright—authorship and ownershipThe Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (CDPA 1988) defines the author of a work as the person who created it....
Passing off—goodwill, misrepresentation and damage
Passing off—goodwill, misrepresentation and damageWhat is passing off?Passing off is a common law tort which protects rights that are not capable of...
Absolute and relative grounds for refusal to register a UK trade mark
Absolute and relative grounds for refusal to register a UK trade markAbsolute and relative groundsA trade mark’s essential function is to be a badge...
Copyright infringement—remedies
Copyright infringement—remediesThis Practice Note covers the remedies available for copyright infringement.The remedies available in cases of...
Introduction to revocation of patents
Introduction to revocation of patentsPatents may be revoked, that is, taken off the register of patents, if it is decided that they are invalid in...
Joint ownership of intellectual property rights
Joint ownership of intellectual property rightsWhen parties collaborate on creative projects or research and development, complex questions arise...
Sub-licensing intellectual property rights
Sub-licensing intellectual property rightsAn intellectual property (IP) owner may choose to license its IP to a third party. This can be an effective...
Brand protection online—strategy
Brand protection online—strategyHaving an online presence is essential for most brands. Many advertise and sell their products online—on their own...
Types of dispute resolution
Types of dispute resolutionThis Practice Note provides an overview of the main types of dispute resolution that are an alternative to litigation in IP...
Parallel imports—UK
Parallel imports—UKThe legal frameworkThis Practice Note explains trade mark law on parallel trade. Parallel imports, or ‘grey market’ goods, are...
Know-how—protection and licensing
Know-how—protection and licensingThis Practice Note explains what know-how is and sets out the different ways know-how can be protected before...
Copyright—secondary infringement
Copyright—secondary infringementWhereas primary infringement requires in most instances the act of reproduction, secondary infringement is about...
Licensing intellectual property rights
Licensing intellectual property rightsLicensing IP rights—introductionDrafting IP licences can raise a number of commercial and legal issues, which...
Application to register a UK trade mark
Application to register a UK trade markThis Practice Note provides guidance on applying to register a trade mark at the UK Intellectual Property...
IP rights and semiconductors
IP rights and semiconductorsBackground to semiconductorsA semiconductor is essentially any material which has electrical conductivity and can thus...
Can the assignment of a patent be retroactively effective?
Associated legal terms
Lapsed patent
A patent lapses where the renewal fees have not been paid.
Patents register
The patents register includes details of all patents and the registrable transactions or incidents relating to that patent.
Vexatious litigation
The use of ‘sham’ litigation which is 'manifestly unfounded' and has no other purpose but to put pressure on the other party to agree to the dominant company’s terms or otherwise force them out of business can amount to an abuse of a dominant position. The reasoning is that such litigation puts the weaker party in a situation where it has no option but to agree to the other party’s terms or otherwise puts it in violation of its own contractual or legal obligations and without redress.
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