Our Intellectual Property team is focusing on providing pragmatical solutions for IP issues, both nationally and internationally, in a wide range of industry sectors.

Services include advising on:

• Protection of registered and unregistered IP rights including patents, trademarks, designs;
• Copyrights and neighbouring rights; 
• Enforcement of IP rights including infringement and revocation actions in relation to patents, designs, trademarks, copyrights and neighbouring rights; 
• Commercialization of IP rights, including drafting and negotiating licenses, assignments, co existence agreements and other commercial agreements involving the exploitation of IP rights; 
• Anti-counterfeiting including customs measures and civil and criminal law enforcement; 
• IP audits and strategic advice on trade mark and patent portfolios; 
• Advising on database rights and IP rights in software and internet-based technologies; 
• Domain name disputes, including arbitration in Alternative Dispute Resolution proceedings;
  

Clients

One of our strengths lies in the diversity of our client base and, consequently, the range of deals on which it has advised. Our clients include:

• A global company in the petroleum sector 
• A European operator of high deluxe Outlet Shopping Villages 
• Fashion and sports apparel industries 
• An international music company 
• A leading international agrochemical company 
• US database company 
• US consumer goods companies (food and non-food) 
• Belgian chocolate and beer manufactures 
• A Belgian mobile telephone operator 
• International and European football associations 
• European railway operator 
• Domain name registries and e-commerce businesses 
• A national television channel and a satellite TV operator
  

The CMS Intellectual Property Group

Intellectual property (IP) represents one of the most important resources a company can have, and CMS helps clients to secure and protect such strategic assets. CMS has more than 60 attorneys who specialise in this area and are members of the relevant national and international associations and working parties.

What distinguishes the CMS Intellectual Property Practice Group is the combination of deep local expertise with the ability to collaborate across borders and to coordinate transactions across jurisdictions. We can provide our advice, both for local and international markets, in the following areas:

• Brands, trademarks and passing-off 
• Patents 
• Technical expertise and confidential information 
• Industrial design rights 
• Copyright 
• Competition law 
• Anti-counterfeiting and anti-piracy 
• Contracts for the protection, management and exploitation of IP rights including strategic alliances, technology transfer licensing, franchising and merchandising 
• Databases.