Choosing an Intellectual Property Lawyer

In today’s age, intellectual property rights have to be established, processed and often defended. Intellectual property lawyers are those people who have specialized in intellectual property laws and help process transactions and litigate such claims in the court of law.

Before we look further into the processes involved in choosing an intellectual property lawyer, let us glance at a few terms which we will use in this article:

• Intellectual property is defined as ‘something created by the mind which can be protected by the law, and can be bought, sold, traded, rented and sued over’.
• Copyrights are a legal form of protection provided by law for original works of authorship which have been fixed into a physical form.
• Patents are a form of legal protection provided for ideas, inventions, processes and methods.
• Trademarks are a form of legal protection provided for words and symbols which help consumers identify the origin of goods.

Intellectual property laws thus cover the entire gamut of legislation involving contracts, patents, trademarks, copyrights etc. The lawyers who practice intellectual property law are either generalists or specialists. Then there are those lawyers who only process transactions, while those who litigate in the court of law.

So if you are looking for an intellectual property lawyer, you first need to identify why you need one such lawyer in the first place. For example, if you just need to register a trademark, then you need a lawyer who undertakes transactional work. If you are suing someone over a copyright violation, then you will need a lawyer who will litigate in a court of law.

There are separate lawyers who deal with patent law. This is because the law dealing with patents is specialized and lawyers must apply for patent bar licenses before they can practice in this particular field.

Ideally, you can find most lawyers online if you search in the Internet search engines. While choosing an intellectual property lawyer, keep in mind to check out:

• The lawyer’s background such as bio, and relevant work experience with cases similar to yours.
• Ask around for references from your friends, family and colleagues. Often people in your field of business may know good lawyers.
• When you do find a lawyer, do an Internet search with his name, and see what articles, news items etc. crop up.
• Visit the website of your state’s bar association and check the lawyer’s registration and relevant information.
• Check the online archives of newspapers to see any articles regarding the lawyer in print and see how he has handled his previous cases.
• See what associations and organizations the lawyer is affiliated with. Ideally, the lawyer should be involved in a chamber of commerce and such other local organizations.

There are different methods in which most lawyers will take their fees. Depending upon the kind of work you have, the lawyer will either charge you on an hourly basis or will take a percentage.

If your company deals with intellectual property on a regular basis, then it is a good idea to hire a firm of intellectual property lawyers on an ongoing basis.

Before you hire the services of the lawyer or the lawyer’s firm, do ask about conflict of interest. This helps you ensure that the same lawyer is not representing the opposing or interested parties.

Have a good look at the retainer agreement before you sign it. In fact, you can ask the lawyer to walk you through it.

After going through all these processes, choose a lawyer who you feel is right for you and with whom you feel a good rapport with.