In the video below, our avatar lawyer Hedy clarifies frequently asked questions and flags opportunities and risks in areas such as trademarks, patents, designs, copyright and trade secrets.
Disclaimer
The content provided in this section is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Although we endeavor to ensure that the information is up-to-date, correct and relevant, we do not guarantee that it reflects the most recent legislative changes or that it is appropriate to specific situations. For legal advice on specific cases, a qualified professional should be consulted. Reading or using the information included here does not establish any attorney-client relationship with our firm and does not dispense obtaining personalized legal advice from a qualified professional.
To control the use of trademarks and promote their defense, companies should monitor the market and use surveillance tools to monitor new trademark registrations, as well as the use of potentially conflicting signs on competing products. Companies should also establish internal policies and contracts regulating how their trademarks can be used by partners, distributors or affiliates.
The external appearance of a product (all or part of it) can be protected by registering a design, guaranteeing exclusive rights and preventing imitations.
European patents with unitary effect differ from classic European patents by allowing the same patent to have the same effect in 18 EU member states, including Portugal, through a more simplified system. European patents with unitary effect can only be asserted before the Unified Patent Court.
Lists of suppliers and customers, business plans, cost structures, the distribution chain, manufacturing processes, internal methodologies, advertising strategies, consumer profiles, source code for software, cooking recipes can all constitute trade secrets. Prevention by creating a plan to protect the company's trade secrets is the only way to protect these secrets which, once revealed, lose their value.
Certain online social networks offer free music libraries for use in videos to share between users. However, even though these platforms disclose guidelines for use, this does not mean that users should not ensure in each case that they do not violate third parties' intellectual property rights.
Establishing who owns the intellectual property rights to an employee's inventions can be crucial to avoiding disputes over the ownership of these rights. In Portugal, for example, more than 50% of the patents granted to companies were inventions generated by their employees in the context of their employment, which makes it clear how important it is to have this matter well regulated.
The so-called "Freedom to Operate" or "FTO" is a practice carried out before a new product, technology or service is launched on the market, and aims to minimize the risk of infringement of third-party intellectual property rights, through a search and analysis of third-party rights in force. This analysis can also be useful for identifying licensing opportunities or strategic partnerships.
Generally, a letter of this type can be an extrajudicial notification or a "cease and desist" order. Ignoring the notification can lead to more severe and costly legal measures, including a court case. It is important to ensure that you have read and understood the content and details of the accusation to define your reaction strategy. A good strategy can minimize damage and even resolve the case without litigation.
Computer programs can be protected by copyright, regardless of any registration formalities. Computer programs, as such, cannot be patented. Computer-implemented inventions, on the other hand, can be protected by patent. It is also important in this context to remember that the use of software must respect the terms of the associated licenses, even if we are talking about open-source software. Checking compliance with the licenses is essential because improper use of licensed software can, for example, constitute copyright infringement.