Hard grIP (Patents & Trade Secrets)

Patent and trade secret (i.e., hard intellectual property) strategy is critical to value creation for many emerging companies. Growing a patent portfolio can keep competition at bay, generate licensing revenue, and attract investors and strategic partners. We call grIP’s hard intellectual property practice Hard grIP.

When an emerging company’s technology is expected to drive its future success, locking down its intellectual property via patents or trade secret protection becomes a critical business task. While thinking about intellectual property protections may not seem as urgent as payroll and current profit margins, failing to promptly secure intellectual property rights may undercut future growth. Those who procrastinate risk forfeiting rights to their innovations or may find patent roadblocks placed in their path by competitors who beat them in a race to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

Hard grIP does much more than just helping our clients “get a patent.” Working with our clients’ technical and business leads, we craft forward-looking patent and trade secret strategies that take into account each client’s particular business plan, technology, market landscape, and funding outlook.  After all, we are mindful that, beyond offering market protections and a competitive edge, patent rights can be licensed to generate additional recurring revenue, help attract investment, and enhance exit valuation.

Our attorneys’ broad and deep experience in all aspects of the patent/business lifecycle enables us to provide emerging companies with customized, strategic intellectual property advice and services that focus on long-term growth.  For example, our Hard grIP attorneys have extensive experience in:

• procuring patents in a wide range of technologies—both in the US and internationally;

• patent enforcement and licensing;

• advising clients on freedom to operate (g., avoiding infringement of others’ patents) before product launch;

• asserting and defending against patent infringement allegations in Federal District Court and the International Trade Commission;

• attacking and defending issued patents in the Patent Trial and Appeal Board; and

• arguing patent appeals at the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

We provide emerging companies with guidance on whether technologies are ripe for patent protection or if intellectual property is better protected as trade secrets. We design and execute patent procurement strategies that maintain flexibility and push expenses down the road. We work to ensure that clients’ patents are valuable business assets—and not merely costly papers with the USPTO seal. We help emerging companies avoid or navigate any patent infringement allegations.

Hard grIP is designed to integrate intellectual property strategy into our clients’ business plans from day one.