IP LITIGATION MANAGEMENT
Knowledge Is Power
The potential for litigation is a fact of life, especially in relation to intangible assets like intellectual property which derive their very force and structure from the law. The more successful you are, the greater the risk becomes. You need to prepare for your success by planning ahead. A vital component of every company's business plan should be a robust legal strategy developed with the help of a lawyer, and this plan should address at least three fundamental questions:
- How Will I Avoid IP Litigation? Clarity and preparation: These are the keys to managing your IP litigation risk. Having a clear understanding of your legal rights--and their limits--allows a business to protect itself and take advantage of its opportunities without stepping over the line and risking legal trouble. If you know your rights you can put the public on notice of them through proper patent, trademark, and copyright marking; prevent risks to your company's trade secrets and other confidential business information; avoid inadvertently using other people’s intellectual property rights; and head off small issues rather than risking their becoming problems. In short, you can feel confident in your ability to make business decisions without having unintended legal consequences.
- How Will I Be Prepared for IP Litigation? If litigation should arise, understanding your assets and risks is critical to being prepared. By knowing your company’s rights and ensuring they are fully protected, you will be in a strong position that competitors and other companies who might otherwise be tempted to take advantage of their greater size, will respect. By understanding your risks, you will know when it is important to take warnings or business obstacles seriously, when to tread carefully around dangerous rivals, and when your company's best option is fighting for its rights and protecting itself in court.
- How Can I Protect My Business? Protecting your business means more than simply avoiding litigation and preparing for others to commence it. It can also mean using the legal system to enforce and protect your rights against those who would try to run roughshod over them. For example, one of the greatest concerns a creative start-up entrepreneur worries about is whether his or her idea, which could be groundbreaking, could be stolen and copied by larger, more-established firms. As incumbents, they have many advantages in the marketplace with their existing brand, distribution network, customer base, heavy bankrolls, and the like. IP protection puts a small company on an equal footing with its larger competitors, and allows it to protect its unique innovative assets against anyone who would threaten them, big or small. Litigation is not easy for convenient, but it can be affordable for small business with the right law firm, and essential to a start-up's ability to stay afloat and in the black.
We can help you identify risk areas where you need a lawyer and bridge the gap between business people and lawyers.
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