挑战
Before appointing Barker Brettell as advisors, Aurrigo – a leading international provider of transport technology – had a robust trade secrets policy which worked well for the company. However, when Aurrigo was looking to attract investors to expand its business, Barker Brettell advised the company to review this strategy, bearing in mind that investors preferred to back companies where the funding is covered by patent protection.
解决方案
Barker Brettell’s relationship with Aurrigo began with one of its highly experienced patent partners spending the day at the client’s headquarters. During the day, the patent partner presented on IP as a business asset, the filing criteria and rights provided by patents, and the monetary value of patents. Following the presentations, we proceeded to capture inventions for potential patent protection.
结果
The first patent application Barker Brettell drafted included many different inventions around one of Aurrigo’s key products. The strategy was to save on filing costs and defer prosecutions costs by including multiple inventions in the application. Barker Brettell has gone on to adopt this strategy in other patent applications it has drafted for the client. The first application has now led to granted rights in the UK, the US and Singapore,with a pending application in Europe and scope for further divisional applications.
Barker Brettell has, to date, drafted eight separate patent applications for the client. Most of these applications contain multiple, separable inventions, providing scope for protection in multiple jurisdictions as well as further divisional patent applications. Barker Brettell has also advised on trade secrets; the client maintains a ‘know-how’ record and the client is aware of the importance of confidentiality, including the correct use of NDAs.
Aurrigo 还就其内部流程向 Barker Brettell 寻求了建议，以期最大限度地提升其知识产权的价值。具体建议包括：定期召开知识产权管理会议，以确保任何新发明都能得到适当保护；启动专利监测服务，以了解该领域内还有哪些其他主体在申请专利，以及他们申请了哪些专利； 制定知识产权预算和时间表，确保分配充足资金以维持适当的保护；制定并发布书面知识产权政策，确保关键员工了解保护知识产权的要求及其在公司发展中的作用；建立正式的知识产权采集政策或系统，确保所有知识产权得到妥善记录；以及评估“专利箱”税收制度是否有利，并核查奥里戈是否充分利用了研发税收抵免制度。
When Aurrigo launched on the AIM market in 2022, the business was valued at £20 million, with its patent portfolio and copyright in its software forming an important part of that value. In preparation for the flotation, Barker Brettell carried out an IP audit, helping the company meet the necessary requirements for listing.
巴克·布雷特尔律师事务所继续就知识产权事宜为奥里戈提供法律咨询，该客户也持续对其知识产权进行投资。
“When the business launched on AIM in 2022, it was valued at £20m, with its software patents and copyright forming an important part of that value.”
