The Library @ The Lightbox - "Everything you need to know about IP for Small Businesses but did not know what, whom, where or how to ask"

Standard YouTube Licence Jane Lambert

The Library @ The Lightbox is an important resource for entrepreneurs and other innovative and creative people in Barnsley which opened in The Glassworks last Saturday.  Its facilities include a ground floor sharing space for up to 45 people with a large 86” Tango screen.

I have been invited to give a talk in that sharing space on Monday, 22 July 2019 between 17:30 and 18:30.  The title of my talk will be "Everything you need to know about IP for Small Businesses"  It will cover everything a startup or other small business needs to know about protecting its investment in branding, design, technology and creativity.

On branding, I will cover not only registered trade marks and passing off but less obvious protection such as database rights in market research and customer service records which is the basis of a business's goodwill.

On design, I will discuss both decorative design which is protected by design registration and in some cases copyright but also functional design which is covered by unregistered design right and sometimes semiconductor topographies.

On technology, I will mention not only patents but also trade secrets (including the new Directive), unregistered design rights, copyright and database right for programs and data, unregistered design rights and plant varieties.

In relation to creativity, I will talk about copyright and rights in performances.

On enforcement, I will consider litigation options (the Patents Court, Intellectual Property Enterprise Court multitrack and small claims track, the IPO's tribunals. the Chancery Division and County Court) and alternatives to litigation such as ICANN's UDRP and Nominet's DRS for domain name disputes, IPO examiners opinions on the validity or infringement of patents and mediation).

I shall explore funding options such as before and after the event insurance.

I will tell attendees where they can get more information such as the British Library and Leeds and Sheffield Central Library Business and IP Centres. For those who want to consult a specialist lawyer or patent or trade mark attorney, I shall speak about my own pro bono clinics at the Barnsley Business Village and Sheffield Central Library as well as the Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys' at Leeds, Sheffield and elsewhere.

This is a must for anyone who owns or contemplates setting up a small business.  The next time I am likely to deliver a similar talk will be in London and the conference organizer charge £645 + VAT for such events. Should anyone wish to discuss this article or any topic mentioned or referred it in it, call me on 020 7404 5252 during office hours or send me a message through my contact form. 

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

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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.

Talk to Halifax Law Society: Trade Marks and Passing Off

I have been asked to talk about trade marks, passing off, geographical indications and the legal protection of brands generally to Halifax Law Society at the White Swan Hotel in Halifax on Tuesday, 20 March 2012 between 13:30 and 15:30.


My talk will cover the following topics:

• Definitions: what is a brand and what is a trade mark;
• Common law protection of brands;
• Trade mark registration;
• TRIPS, Paris and Madrid;
• Trade mark directives;
• Trade Marks Act 1994;
• Community trade marks;
• Registration in the Trade Mark Registry and at OHIM;
• Objecting to a registration: third party observations, opposition, invalidity and revocation;
• Infringement proceedings in the Chancery Division and the Patents County Court;
• Passing off;
• Geographical Indications;
• Domain names; and
• Company Names Tribunal.

For further information, my contact at Halifax Law Society is Carol Stevenson of Finn Gledhill on 01422 330000 or enquiries@finngledhill.co.uk but the Halifax Law Society blog also invites enquiries to David Swarbrick (@dslippy) at dwarb@gmail.com on 0795 457 9992. I am also happy to be contacted on  0113 320 3232 or through my contact form and I shall pass on any enquiries to Carol or David. 

Finally, I wish you all a happy New Year.