With the growth of the information age, businesses are becoming increasingly aware of the value of intellectual property. The growth and survival of a business can now often depend on protecting the company's intellectual property assets and resolving intellectual property disputes. While many firms offer intellectual property services, Kirton & McConkie's Intellectual Property Practice Section offers a uniquely integrated solution to a company's intellectual property needs that also takes into account the related employment, tax, business organization, international, and other legal issues.

Our Intellectual Property Practice Section handles the full spectrum of intellectual property matters, including United States and international patents, trademarks, copyrights, computer law, trade regulation, unfair competition, trade secrets, and related licensing, contracts, litigation, dispute resolution, and administrative proceedings.

The section's attorneys routinely handle matters involving electrical and computer-related technology, medical devices, pharmaceutical products, and a wide variety of mechanical and chemical systems and apparatus. Each attorney has a scientific education and/or background in fields such as physics, chemistry, biology, and engineering. All of our attorneys are registered to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Our attorneys and legal assistants have broad experience in managing intellectual property portfolios. We are currently managing international portfolios of patents, trademarks, and/or copyrights for a variety of companies, including companies involved in developing medical devices, electrical devices, and computer-related technology. Some of our attorneys have served as intellectual property counsel for large multi-national corporations and bring with them insights into better interaction between inside and outside counsel. The firm utilizes a computerized docketing system to track the portfolios of its clients and to assist its clients in maintaining and renewing intellectual property rights worldwide.

Patents

• Patentability searches
• Right to use searches
• Domestic and foreign patents
• International patent maintenance
• Reissue and reexamination

Trademarks

• Trademark clearance
• Trademark registration
• Policing unauthorized trademark use
• Monitoring Internet use
• International trademark filing and maintenance
• Oppositions and cancellations

Copyrights

• Copyright investigations
• Copyright registrations
• Policing Internet content
• Internet copyright issues

Strategic Counseling

• IP protection strategies
• Discovering infringement
• Avoiding infringement
• Mining IP portfolios

Licensing

• Negotiating agreements
• Preparing license documents

IP Litigation and Dispute Resolution

• State and Federal Court infringement and unfair competition lawsuits
• Pre-filing investigations
• Mediation and arbitration
• Cost-effective litigation teams
• Markman hearings
• Appeals
• Internet domain name disputes