Intellectual Property

Intellectual property is a collective name for various rights to things that people invent or create. Images, source codes, computer programs, databases, photos, logos, names, designs, software, texts and inventions may be eligible for protection. And that applies both; offline and online. Laws, such as the Copyright Act, Trade Name Act or National Patent Act, regulate what is eligible for which protection.

Intellectual property is also known as IP or intellectual property rights (or in short: IP law / IP rights). Intellectual property consists of copyright, database right, trade name right, trademark right, design right and patent right. Neighbouring rights, personality rights and rights to domain names are often considered related rights (or are part of one of these rights). 

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Intellectual property is becoming increasingly important on the internet, for IT and ICT. The different rights protect the different products of the human mind. So, for example, an invention can be protected by patent law; an original software program by copyright. Company names can be protected by trade name law and trademark law. And the latter also applies to distinguish goods or services.

As lawyers specializing in intellectual property law cases on the internet, LAWFOX offers companies support in (the defence against) enforcement of intellectual property rights.

Copyright is a very common right. It protects the creator of his own intellectual creation. Therefore, the work must have its own, original character and have a personal stamp of the maker. In other words, creative choices have to be made. Moreover, copyright applies to many different works: images, photos, texts, source code, logos, and designs can, for example, be eligible for copyright. Authors, photographers, designers, programmers and journalists often have copyrights. And that applies to both spheres; offline and online. Hence copyright also applies on the internet.

Copyright protects the creator against copying or publishing a copyrighted work without permission. The work may therefore often not be used or distributed without permission or a certain license.

Database Law

Database law can protect collections of data. This right belongs to the producer of the database, the person who has invested in the collection of the data. The holder of the database right can take action against requesting or reusing (parts of) the database without permission. Such a procedure can be brought against little use, which often happens structurally and systematically (scraping), but procedures against the complete copying of a database are also possible. Recently it has also become clear that meta-search engines should pay close attention to the database rights of the databases that are being searched. This is especially true when essentially the same functionalities are offered; quests are translated in real-time, and the results of the search are shown in its own layout while duplicates are merged.

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Tradename Law

Trade name law resembles trademark law (see below). Trade name law protects a company’s name. In order to protect a trade name, the trade name does not have to be registered but must be used in the business to indicate the company. A trade name holder can take action against parties who use the same trade name after the former company was the first one to use the trade name, thus causing confusion with the relevant public. Moreover, domain names can also sometimes be protected as a trade name.

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Trademark Law

A brand is a symbol that can be used to distinguish products or services. So it has an origin and distinction function.

A brand often consists of a word or words, or an image such as a logo. A trademark can be registered with a trademark agency. The proprietor of a trademark may prohibit others from using a sign that is identical or nearly the same. Likewise, if the reputation of the brand is impaired, or if an unjustified advantage is taken from the reputation of a brand, the trademark owner can take action against this. Trademark law is very relevant on the internet. It regularly happens that trademark holders take action against holders of domain names, or against website owners who label brands without the consent of the trademark holder.

Patent Law

A patent (often referred to as a patent) is the exclusive right to make, use or sell an invention. If one intends on that protection, it is possible to apply for a patent. After registration, the patent offers very powerful protection against infringers. Even if infringers have developed the same invention completely independently, the patentee may take action against the sale of that second invention. Patent law on software is difficult, but not impossible. Patent law can be very relevant for hardware and (technical) products. Read more about patents here.

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Disputes

For which type of protection a certain dispute qualifies, is regulated by the relevant law, such as the Copyright Act, the Trade Name Act, the EU Trade Mark Regulation, the Benelux Convention on Intellectual Property or the National Patent Act. Intellectual property law, however, has a special position within procedural law. In legal proceedings, the losing party can be ordered to pay the full (reasonable) costs incurred by the other party, including the costs incurred for the lawyer.

In addition, there are many enforcement options, including seizure and a quick ban. This makes going to court attractive if you have a strong legal base. If, however, your legal starting position is weak, then we do not advise you to go to court is not desirable. It is therefore very important that you are aware of your legal position and your chances in legal proceedings.

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What do we do?

Intellectual property is becoming increasingly important on the internet, for IT and ICT. Images, source codes, computer programs, databases, photos, logos, names, designs, software, texts, domain names, websites and inventions can all have intellectual property rights.

A common problem with intellectual property and the internet is that many people think that things on the internet – such as texts and images – are free from intellectual property rights. This is not the case and therefore often leads to disputes.

We handle matters related to intellectual property and the internet, IT and ICT. We do business for both the copyright holder and the party that would have committed an infringement. We also act for intermediaries such as hosting providers.

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Example Cases that we handled

We handle cases with regard to intellectual property every day. Below are some examples:

  • We negotiated the amount of compensation to be paid for a website developer who had used several photos from the internet for a website which he developed and significantly reduced.
  • We have managed to find a favourable settlement for a copyright holder in the event of a breach of database rights.
  • We have repeatedly hindered interrupting trade names that infringed our customers’ trademark rights.
  • We maintain intellectual property rights in various open-source projects.
  • We regularly advise on and litigate in copyright-, trademark-, and tradename cases.

What can we do for you?

We can do several things for you in intellectual property and internet, IT or ICT matters, including the following:

  • We can estimate your legal position in the dispute;
  • If there is an infringement of your rights, we can send a summons letter in which the other party is ordered to stop the infringement and to compensate the damage suffered by you;
  • If you are accused of an infringement of intellectual property rights, we can send a statement of defence stating that there has been no infringement;
  • We can assist you in negotiating a settlement that is most favourable to you;
  • We can summon the other party for infringement of your intellectual property rights;
  • We can start summary proceedings against the other party in order to apply for a provisional measure;
  • If there is an infringement of your intellectual property rights, we can request an ex-parte ban from the court;
  • We may collect evidence to prove the breach and take other protective measures;
  • If you have received a subpoena for alleged infringement, we can respond to it by means of a defence letter or a response statement that can be used in legal proceedings.

Contact

LAWFOX’s lawyers are happy to assist you. We can prevent legal proceedings for your company or organization, or take legal action if required. We have a team available for you that is glad to help with all your questions about intellectual property.

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