Intellectual Property seminar for Startups and other SMEs

Jane Lambert 

The Barnsley Business Village has invited me to speak on Intellectual Property for Startups and other SMEs at the Business Village's East Meeting Room on 12 Feb 2026 between 12:00 and 14:30.   

Here are the details:

Jane Lambert

Key takeaways:

• IP is a business asset, not just legal admin
• Investors care about IP more than founders think
• Getting it wrong early is expensive to fix later

Event content: Protecting Value, Not Just Ideas

1. Welcome & Why IP Actually Matters

Most start ups don’t fail because their idea was bad — they fail because someone else copied it better, faster, or with deeper pockets.

2. IP Terminology (Without the Legal Headache)

Plain-English explanations of common terms so you can leave able to understand IP conversations without a translator!

3. Overview of the Main IP Rights

A practical tour of the IP toolbox – patents, trade marks, copyright etc, what they protect, and when they are useful.

4. Registration Processes & Typical Costs

What can be registered, how long it takes, and ballpark costs.

5. Enforcement: What Happens When Things Go Wrong

Explanation of what “enforcement” actually means and what it looks like.

6. IP Insurance: Boring Name, Surprisingly Useful

What IP insurance covers, typical types and costs, and common misconceptions.

7. Devising an IP Strategy

How and when to turn IP from paperwork into power.

8. Integrating IP into a Business Plan

Learn where IP fits in a business plan, how it affects valuation and red flags that scare investors off.

9. Monitoring Competitors & the Market

Using tools and databases to keep an eye on competitor IP flings and potential infringement risks.

10. Where to Find Further Information & Help

Leave the seminar with free and low-cost advisory services, grants, support schemes and innovation hubs.

Optional Extras

• Real-world startup IP horror stories
• Short case study: “Good IP vs Bad IP Decisions”
• Live Q&A with practical scenarios

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Book your FREE place to this seminar.   We hope to see you there!

Relaunch of the Barnsley IP Clinic

Photo ChicXulub Licence CC BY-SA 4.0 Deed Source Wikimedia Commons

 

Jane Lambert

Until the pandemic, I held pro bono consultations on IP and tech law at the Barnsley Business Village on the second Tuesday of every month. I continued to offer those consultations over Zoom during lockdown and afterwards (see IP Clinics FAQs 8 March 2023 IP Yorkshire). Even though a consultation could take place at almost any time they were never as popular as the drop-in clinic. Barnsley Business Village is therefore restoring the one-to-one clinics at the Business Village with effect from 16:00 on Tuesday 12 March 2024.

The new clinics will differ slightly from the previous ones in two respects,   First, I have recruited patent and trade mark attorneys and other IP specialists to our clinic.  If, for example, you want to apply for a patent for your invention you need to talk to a patent attorney rather than a lawyer like me.  If you need a prototype I will introduce you to a product design consultant.   I have spent my career advising specialist solicitors and patent and trade mark attorneys on difficult points of law, drafting complex legal instruments for use in business as well as litigation and representing parties in court, IPO tribunals and negotiations.  I should be best placed to advise on strategy, licensing and dispute resolution. Secondly, we shall make more use of Zoom and other technologies so that we can address your issues promptly. rather than wait until the second Tuesday,

The first step is to contact us,   The best way is by completing the form below but you can also call the Business Village on  01226 249590 or me on 020 7404 5252 to make an appointment for initial advice and signposting   If I think someone else is better placed to help you than me I will put you in touch with them.  Whoever you see will give you up to 30 minutes of his or her time absolutely free. 

Fill out my online form.

Can you keep a Secret? Non-Disclosure Agreements, Trade Secrets, Use, Abuse and the New Law, Barnsley 22 Nov at 16:00

Author Willh26
Licence Creative Commons Attribution share alike 4.0 international
Source  Wikipedia

Jane Lambert

In Can you keep a Secret? Non-Disclosure Agreements, Trade Secrets, Use, Abuse and the New Law I mentioned my talk at the Business Village in Barnsley on 22 Nov 2018 at 16:00.

At whom is this talk aimed?

Primarily people with bright ideas that are  not yet ready to be launched such as inventors, designers, entrepreneurs and other creatives but it should also be useful to angel and private equity investors, lenders and their professional advisers.

What will it cover?

Everything.  What is meant by "confidential information", "obligations of confidence", "non-disclosure agreements ("NDA") and "trade secrets".   How the law of confidence operates.   How the new Trade Secrets Directive alters the law.  Uses of NDA   What can be protected and what can't.  Drafting a confidentiality agreement in the light of the new law.  How a confidentiality agreement can be enforced.  Interim injunctions. How to resist and discharge them.  Likely risks and costs.

What about handouts?
Everybody who attends the course will receive by email a full set of slides and other teaching and reference materials.

How much will the course cost?
Nothing but you must register here in advance.

What are the speaker's credentials? 

You will find my profile here.

How do I get to The Business Village?

The full postal address is:

The Business Village @BarnsleyBIC
Innovation Way
Barnsley
S75 1JL

It is a very short drive from the junction with the M1 at Dodworth. It is also close to the town centre.  There is usually plenty of free parking on the site.   

If you come by public transport it is served by several bus routes to the Interchange station.

Are you planning to give this talk elsewhere?
Yes.  All over the UK.  The  next stop will be London.

Where can I get more information?
Call me on 020 7404 5252 during office hours or send me a message through my contact page.

Lunchtime Talk - "How can I protect my Business Idea?" Barnsley BIC 9 May 2017 12-15-13-15

Standard YouTube Licence


Jane Lambert

I have been holding free 30-minute consultations on intellectual property and related areas of the law at the Barnsley Business and Innovation Centre ("BBIC") between 10:00 and 12:00 on the second Tuesday of every month for the last 10 years and at other venues in the North of England for even longer. During that time, the question that I have been asked most frequently is "How can I protect my business idea?"

It is not an easy question to answer because it depends on the type of product and the nature of your business. A patent may afford the most extensive protection for a new product or process but if the costs of patenting, insuring and policing the are likely to outweigh the income likely to be generated from the invention you would be better off looking at other forms of legal protection.

To help start-ups and other small businesses work out the answer for themselves I shall be giving a talk entitled

How can I protect my Business Idea?

 at Barnsley BIC on 9 May 2017 between 12:15 and 13:15.

I will introduce you to all the tools in the legal toolbox such as patents, trade secrecy, unregistered design rights, trade marks et cetera.

I will tell you the advantages and disadvantages of each type of protection. For example, patents offer the most extensive protection but they are expensive to get, maintain and enforce, they are not always easy to get, they may be revoked after grant and you have to disclose to the world including your competitors how to make or use them.

I will explain how to get each type of IP and how much it will cost.

I will give you some useful tips about insurance, watch services and enforcement.

I will advise you on the different types of IP professional, where to find them, how to instruct them and how much they are likely to cost.

Finally, I will share a methodology for working out an IP strategy.

Space is likely to be limited so call Christine Mason on 01226 249590 or  George Scanlon on 020 7404 5252 to book your place.

The full address of BBIC is

Barnsley Business and Innovation Centre
Innovation Way
Barnsley
S75 1JL

Tel: 01226 249590

You will find full directions on the BBIC contact page. Usually, there is plenty of on-site and street parking. The BBIC is not far from the town centre from where there are good rail links to Huddersfield, Sheffield, Leeds, Wakefield, Doncaster and the rest of the country and well served by local buses.