Intellectual property (IP) rights can be one of an organization’s most valuable assets. However, too often these assets are under-protected and undefended. Obtaining successful outcomes for our clients is a three-part program:
- Education
- Protection
- Defense
Whether a patent, trademark, trade dress, trade secret, or copyright, the first step is to educate our client as to when the client needs to seek IP protection and the available alternatives. The second step is executing the right protection mechanism for the IP. The final step is monitoring and vigorously defending our client's IP rights.
Services for IP clients include:
Education
- Advise clients on patents, trademarks, trade dress, copyrights, trade secrets and unfair competition issues
- Conduct IP audits to determine inventory and value of intellectual property
- Evaluate patents and patent portfolios
- Brand development
- Online publishing and development of new types of media
Protection
- Prepare and prosecute patent, trademark, and copyright registration applications
- Prepare filings for maintenance of registrations
- Negotiate and draft patent and trademark licenses
- Draft technology transfer agreements, assignments, and joint ventures
- Handle trade secret matters, including negotiation and preparation of nondisclosure agreements
- Work with clients on licensing, employer and vendor agreements to control the use and disclosure of trade secrets
- Digital Millennium Copyright Act Issues
- Transfer of IP issues
- False advertising claims
Defense
- Prosecute and defend actions for copyright, trademark, and patent infringement
- Prepare and assist clients preparing for litigation including defenses, pretrial motions, briefing and discovery strategies
- Monitor technical developments for clients including unfair competition or antitrust
- Act as local counsel for out-of-state law firms and corporations
- Provide counsel and advice on issues related to website content, ISP agreements and licensing
We provide intellectual property guidance for the entertainment and media law, and franchising industries including film and television financing and production, brand selection, protection, licensing and merchandising, and contractual and management disputes.
Our IP clients range from individual inventors to Fortune 500 companies. They represent a wide range of technologies including aeronautical, automotive, software, business method, biomedical and genetic inventions.
Protect your IP assets. Let us help you develop, enforce, and defend your IP rights.
Recent Blog Posts
- Startups or Corporations: IP Strategies for All Businesses
- What is a Deepfake and How Might it Impact Your Business?
- Can AI-Generated Works be Copyrighted?
- AI Legal Issues That Can Impact Your Business
- Under the Bridge – The Rise of Copyright Trolls in the Intellectual Property Space
- Risks Make AI Workplace Policies a Requirement
- Legal Insights Into Businesses Using AI
- Virtual Panel: TikTok, WeChat & More: Talking Tech and IP in The U.S. & China
- What’s in a Name? Protecting Your Business’s Name from a Look-Alike
- What to Consider Before Filing a Patent
Publications & Alerts
- 2024 Year-End Checklist for Businesses, Foster Swift Business & Tax Law News, November 6, 2024
- 2023 Year-End Checklist for Businesses, Foster Swift Business & Tax Law News, November 17, 2023
- NCAA vs. Alston: The Case That Changed College Athletics Forever, April 7, 2023
- Using Low-Cost DIY Legal Services: Risks Far Outweigh Benefits, Foster Swift Business & Tax Law News, January 24, 2023
- Year End Budgeting and Housekeeping Best Practices for Businesses, Foster Swift Business & Tax Law News, October 27, 2022
- 2021 Year-End Checklist for Businesses, Foster Swift Business & Tax Law News, October 24, 2021
Events
- IP and Know-How: Overlooked Assets in the Sale of a Business, Michigan Business Brokers Association (MBBA), June 6, 2024
- What AI Legal Issues Can Impact Your Business?, Second Wednesday Sessions, March 13, 2024
- Why Trademarks Can Be One of Your Most Valuable Assets, Foster Swift Second Wednesday Lunch Break, September 13, 2023
- The Importance of Protecting Your Brand, Foster Swift Collins & Smith - Legal Strategies for Women Leaders, April 26, 2023
- The Future of Business & A.I., Lansing Regional Chamber Policy & Regulatory Education Series, April 4, 2023
- The Importance of IP and Protecting Your Brand, Foster Swift Second Wednesday Lunch Break, November 9, 2022
- Intellectual Property & Entertainment Attorney Panel, Intellectual Property & Entertainment Law Society, November 1, 2021
News
- Preparing Women Business Leaders for 2024 Legal Challenges, Meltwater Newswire, February 20, 2024
- Patent Attorney Murshak Joins Foster Swift, Ingham County Legal News, June 2, 2023
- Returning in 2023: Legal Strategies for Women Business Leaders, EIN Newswire, March 28, 2023
- Mashni Named SBM ACES Chair, Foster Swift Business & Tax Law News, February 4, 2020
- Upcoming Seminars for Businesses New to Exporting, Michigan Business Network, March 14, 2019
- Foster Swift Successful in Achieving Settlement for Client in Patent License Dispute, May 22, 2018
- Business Attorneys Release an Additional Five Legal Basics Videos, November 17, 2015
