Imagine That IP Law Blog

Greater flexibility in remote working environments for employees has led to an increase in the revolving door of new and departing employees and greater challenges for employers to keep up with on-boarding and exiting procedures to protect corporate intellectual property (IP) rights. Such intellectual property rights typically include patents which protect inventions; trademarks which protect a company’s brand and reputation; copyrights which protect works of authorship and creativity; and trade secrets which protect a company’s confidential or propriety ... Read More ›

Intellectual property (IP), like other forms of property, is an asset that can be subject to contractual obligations and agreements between multiple parties. Due to the unique nature of IP as compared to physical assets, the provisions governing IP agreements also have unique characteristics. Parties to these agreements must take special care to ensure that the scope of the agreements are clearly defined, in addition to making each party’s obligations explicit. IP agreements can come in a variety of forms, such as license agreements, assignment agreements, and joint ... Read More ›

On October 17, 2020, the Chinese Legislature passed the Fourth Amendment to the China Patent Law, which will take effect on June 1, 2021. The Fourth Amendment marks the first major change in Chinese patent law since 2008. These changes will have a major impact on both prosecution and enforcement. Key amendments include those related to patent terms, damages, and licenses. Below is a summary of a few of these key amendments.

New Article 20 adds a “Good Faith” provision which reads, in part, “patent rights shall not be abused to harm public interests or the legitimate rights and ... Read More ›