Patent law

Patent law protects technical innovation. What is excluded for protection under the other intellectual property rights because of the technique exception, can be protected by a patent.  With a patent, secrecy is  extremely important, because of the strict novelty requirement that applies in patent law.

But sometimes a patent is also not the right route, and you can better keep your unique industrial process secret and thus protect it as a trade secret. For example, if it is difficult to find out with which machine an end product was made, it may be better not to disclose the working method of that machine by means of a patent.

We can think along with you about the process and the strategic approach in the field of technical innovation and have good contacts with patent attorneys who can take care of a patent application for you.

Are you entering into a new collaboration to develop something innovative that involves multiple parties? Then a cooperation agreement will have to be drawn up to determine how everyone’s ‘Background IP’ and the ‘Foreground IP’ to be developed will be dealt with. Or are you exploring the possibilities for a collaboration, in which confidential information will already be shared? We have a lot of experience with the assessment and drafting of these types of contracts and are happy to help you with this.