Intellectual property rights (IPR) and marketing law

We have extensive experience in handling intellectual property rights and finding solutions for both simple and complex needs. We assist in identifying, securing and establishing protection, regulating rights in agreements and declarations, enforcing infringements, and handling disputes from dialogue and negotiations to possible legal action. Much of our IPR advice is related to technology and IT, areas in which we also have considerable expertise.

In our experience, many companies are not sufficiently aware of the importance of regulating rights in agreements, and do not fully understand the significance of copyright and exclusive rights vs. rights of disposal and rights of use, or any extended rights of disposal with rights of modification. This often results in unclear agreements and provides grounds for discussions and disputes. There is a big difference between granting or obtaining an exclusive right or a non-exclusive right, and whether the right is time-limited or perpetual. This issue is relevant for several types of agreements and contracts, such as IT contracts for implementation, development, and customization, service agreements, license agreements, chain agreements, franchise agreements, R&D agreements, and other cooperation agreements. In addition, we find that many unfortunately forget to ensure that they can actually exercise the rights stipulated in the agreement, for example after termination or bankruptcy of the supplier/cooperation partner.

It is also our experience that many companies should protect their trademarks better. We assist with assessments of whether a company should register one or more trademarks, choose to register a logo or word mark, and select product and service classes. Furthermore, we regularly handle registrations, protests, objections, administrative reviews, and appeals to the Industrial Property Rights Board (KFIR) regarding the Norwegian Industrial Property Office's decisions in trademark cases.  In addition, we assist companies in handling and following up infringements of intellectual property rights, such as product imitation and illegal use of trademarks. We also assist in cases of violations of the Marketing Act and the Trade Secrets Act, which provide supplementary protection against unfair imitation and unfair competition. Our assistance also includes handling customs seizures to protect rights holders against the importation of counterfeit or pirated goods.

When it comes to patents, we often find that there are misunderstandings about what can and should be protected by a patent. Only inventions that solve a technical problem can be patented, and good protection via patents is expensive. A business should therefore normally consider a strategy of ensuring confidentiality, labeling, and monitoring the market as an alternative to patenting.  We can also assist companies in collaboration with patent engineers or patent agencies in assessing the patentability of an invention. At the same time, we can assist in drafting various agreements for the exploitation of the patent, etc., and securing other rights, such as copyright and trademark rights.

We believe that our knowledge and interest in technology, privacy, and consumer protection are useful in our work in the field of intellectual property law. Technological developments are creating new ways of exploiting intellectual property, which in turn raises new legal issues. One example is the use of artificial intelligence (AI), which may require clarification of rights and imposes requirements on source use and transparency. Another example is the use of images on websites, which requires assessment of copyright to photographs vs. the right to one's own image, use of content, and collection and further use of personal data in marketing and sales.

We assist with:

• Copyright
• Trademarks 
• Brand names
• Company names
• Domains
• Design
• Marketing
• Privacy
• Imitation, piracy, and unfair competition
• Customs seizures
• Protection of know-how and trade secrets
• License agreements
• Dealer, exclusive dealer, chain, franchise, distributor, and agent agreements
• Transfer of rights
• Assessment of intellectual property rights in connection with acquisitions, transfers, or restructuring
• Confidentiality and non-disclosure agreements (NDAs)
• Clarification of rights in connection with new or changed use, including AI use
• IPR strategy