IP Terms in Trade Mark Agreements

This practical, ‘hands on’ course provides a structured discussion of various types of intellectual property (IP) clauses in commercial contracts, with a particular emphasis on agreements concerned with trade marks – e.g. trade mark licensing/assignment, distribution agreements, talent/sponsorship agreements, and settlement and co-existence agreements. We focus on why each clause is needed, how such clauses tend to be worded and negotiated, alternative clauses that are encountered, and how the outcome of the negotiations may affect your organisation’s interests. Specific topics to be covered include:

• IP terms that are encountered in different types of trade-mark-related agreement: what is essential and what is ‘nice to have’?
• Negotiating issues, including arguments for and against particular IP clauses; compromise proposals
• Drafting: the importance of accurate drafting of IP terms; how to avoid ambiguity
• Managing IP risks through appropriate contract terms and other measures, including due diligence

Please note that this course will focus mainly on IP-related topics. Practitioners who require training in all aspects of contracts (eg work and payment terms, limitation of liability, law and jurisdiction, confidentiality, duration and termination, etc) should consider combining this course with a more general contracts course or ask us to put together a tailored, in-house course for their organisation.

The course is intended for contracts managers, licensing executives, lawyers, trade mark attorneys and other practitioners whose job involves reviewing or drafting IP terms in commercial contracts. Attenders will understand the basics of the international IP system, and probably have some practical experience of negotiating IP terms, so that they can participate in the discussion, but they are not expected to have had extensive experience or training in intellectual property. In other words, the standard of the course is higher than a general introduction but not a legal ‘masterclass’.

We also run introductory and advanced level courses in various aspects of IP law and general contract drafting – please ask Mark Anderson for further details.

See the full course programme for this course at:

https://www.ucl.ac.uk/laws/events/2021/apr/ip-terms-trade-mark-agreements

Host or Publisher UCL Institute of Brand and Innovation Law (IBIL)