Design Image
Design Image
Design Image

Coulson & Rule is dedicated to the practice of intellectual property law. Our attorneys are experienced in advising clients in a range of IP matters including patents, trade marks, copyright and design.

Patents

Patent procurement is fundamental to our practice. We have attorneys who are experts in patent drafting and patent prosecution who can represent you directly before the UK Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO), the European Patent Office (EPO), and the World Intellectual property Office (WIPO).

In addition to providing advice throughout the patenting process based on our years of experience, our patent attorneys are also highly skilled at managing corporate patent portfolios which cover a range of inter-related inventions. Prosecution of patent applications with a careful eye on related patent applications, related prior art and corresponding patent applications filed in other jurisdictions is conducted with skill at Coulson & Rule. The close working relationship between our attorneys also means that even when different attorneys are looking after different patent applications within a larger portfolio, related patent applications are still carefully considered.

With years of experience of prosecuting patent applications domestically and internationally, we are careful to prepare the patent applications we draft not only with technical and legal precision, but also with consideration of the prosecution of those applications in a wide variety of jurisdictions including the US, Europe and Asia.   

 Our attorneys also have experience and skill in:

  • Strategies for protecting inventions.
  • Invention spotting - identifying patentable inventions and advising on invention harvesting techniques.
  • Strategies for protecting inventions that are commercially sound and within budget.
  • Analysing and responding to official communications, office actions and examination reports and advising on the likelihood of success of pending applications.
  • Attacking and defending patents through opposition, limitation and revocation proceedings.
  • Providing validity opinions.
  • Providing infringement opinions.
  • Maintenance of patents and meticulous records management.
  • Restoration of patents.
  • Restoration of the right to priority.
  • Patent watching.
  • Transferring medium and large portfolios of IP including assignment preparation, preparation of accurate IP schedules and recording transfers in jurisdictions worldwide. 

Trade marks

At Coulson & Rule we recognise the importance of protecting your brand, and we will work with you to protect your valuable brand names, logos and slogans. Our attorneys are highly experienced in:

  • Advising on what makes a registrable trade mark.
  • Preparation, filing and prosecution of trade mark applications
  • Successfully opposing and successfully defending oppositions.
  • Providing freedom to operate and infringement opinions.
  • Maintenance of trade marks and records management.
  • Trade mark watching services.
  • Enforcing trade mark registrations online, in marketplaces such as eBay (TM).

With years of experience of applying to register trade marks before the UKIPO, EUIPO (formerly OHIM) and in overseas jurisdictions, we know what can be registered and what can't. We know the importance of clearance searches and our basic registered trade mark application service includes as standard a preliminary clearance search of the UKIPO and EUIPO databases and an opinion about the likelihood of success of the application. In short, we don't let you spend money registering a trade mark that we don't think we can register for you.

Copyright

Our attorneys provide advice on copyright matters, including when copyright applies, the formal requirements for its subsistence, ownership and duration. When third parties are involved in the design of your products and logos, we can advise on who owns the copyright. We are experienced in taking the necessary steps to ensure that your business is protected, owns all of its IP assets and successfully gets copyright transferred to your ownership where necessary. We also provide infringement opinions and advice about database rights and protecting computer programs.

Designs

Our attorneys can represent you directly before the UK Designs Registry. Our attorneys also have previous experience of acting before the Community Designs Registry (CDR) of EUIPO (European Union Intellectual Property Office).

We also have extensive experience of working with foreign associates to obtain protection for our clients’ designs throughout outside of the United Kingdom. Our design services include:

  • Advising on registrable designs.
  • Preparation, filing and prosecution of UK registered design applications.
  • Infringement opinions.
  • Advising on UK unregistered design rights.
  • Enforcing registered design rights on online market places such as eBay (TM).
  • Maintenance of registered designs and records management.

Budget Control

We are conscious at Coulson & Rule that no business operates with an open cheque book and that tight budget control is essential to every successful corporation. Our attitude is simple, we don't like wasting money and we won't waste yours. Our clients can trust that we don't pay any official fees that can be avoided and we take advantage of any available discounts in official fees as a matter of routine. We also pre-agree fees with our clients so that they know what it will cost before it costs them anything. To us, it’s just a sensible thing to do.

Contact us on 01788 547389 to speak to an attorney (no cost, no obligation).