Baby & Child Brands - IP Law

Legal Services for the Baby & Child Industry

It’s no secret that parents want the best for their children. Consumer spending in the baby and child sector continues to grow year on year, with more brands entering the field and competition increasing. It’s vital that you ensure that your intellectual property and investments remain protected as you navigate the competitive landscape and grow your brand.

Our experienced IP lawyers have a strong track record helping clients in this sector develop their business from the initial concept into a multi-national business. Our specialist solicitors advise on all aspects of intellectual property, from trade marks and designs to contract drafting and rights enforcement.

Read more below for information on services our experienced solicitors can offer your brand in the baby and child industry. And to discuss your specific needs fill in the form opposite for a free consultation, and one of our team will get back to you very soon.

“I would highly recommend Briffa, and Alex Fewtrell specifically, who was so helpful from start to finish.

Being aware that this was my first time registering a design and not being aware of the process, Alex provided me with all of the information required and was always ready to answer any questions I had, and in a timely manner. A pleasure to deal with!”

– Emma Nibhrian, IP Services Client

How Can We Help?

Our legal services for the Baby & Child industry include:

Trade Marks

Servicing the baby and child industry requires a large amount of trust to be fostered between consumers and your brand. This trust is represented in the eyes of your customers through things like you brand name, logo, packaging and even advertising material.

Trade mark registration offers protection for all assets relating to your brands identity, preventing others from misusing your trade marked assets and keeping your reputation safe and secure.

Our expert team of lawyers can advise you on your brand strategy and make sure it’s registered and properly protected anywhere in the world.

Commercial Contracts

Getting your products into the hands and homes of your customers requires a number of parties working cohesively together. Just as your business provides value to families, your stakeholders such as suppliers, manufacturers, wholesalers and distributors, must also work together as a one unit.

Holding all of these separate processes together are a set of agreements covering any number of aspects of your relationship, such as delivery times, pricing and IP ownership amongst many more. Having thorough and fair contracts in place can hold other parties to account when needed and protect you and your rights.

Whether it’s a freelancer, manufacturing, distribution, consumer sales or wholesale agreement, we offer fixed fees to draft, review and negotiate commercial contracts and documents.

Confidential Information

The baby and child sector is an extremely competitive multi-billion pound industry in the UK alone. So a competitive edge can often come from small developments, from a new manufacturing process to an altered recipe, these pieces of information are crucial to ensuring your business remains competitive and sustainable.

Keeping this knowledge confidential can be the difference between fortune and failure. It is therefore essential that the information your business has acquired over time remains the property of your organisation, much like its logo and name.

whether it be inside knowledge of the industry, supply chains or contacts, these are all valuable pieces of information to your business. We can help you keep your knowledge secret with non-disclosure agreements and advice on confidentiality.

Designs

The bustling baby and child sector relies on eye catching design to appeal to consumers. And once an engaging design hits the market, there is the risk of others trying to profit from somebody else’s hard work by copying their designs.

Whilst designs do not need to be registered in order to be afforded some legal protection, registering your designs offers comprehensive and cost-effective protection for your original creation. We can help you secure registered rights and build your intellectual property portfolio.

We advise on both registered and unregistered design rights. We can also advise on a worldwide design protection strategy.

Patents

An invention that provides real value to the baby and child industry can be worth a lot of money, so make sure to protect your original creations with a patent. This protects you from misuse of your product such as importing or exporting without your permission and from third parties copying and selling your patented invention.

From complex software code to new production processes, our expert patent solicitors and associate patent attorneys can advise you on patent protection and guide you through the application process.

Why Choose Briffa?

We’ve provided legal support for the baby and child industry since 1995

We offer a free consultation

We provide fixed fee quotes

We have offices in the UK and the Republic of Ireland

We offer an industry leading service with short turnaround times and business-focused advice

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I patent my new product for the baby and child industry?

In the right circumstances patents can be one of the most versatile tools for protecting your inventions. Perhaps you have developed a new method for processing baby food, or created a piece of software to help children learn, if your new product or process meets the following criteria:

Novelty – the development has not been publicly disclosed, unless under the conditions of a non-disclosure agreement.
Inventive – it is a new and innovative step forward within the industry.
Commercial – The product or process has a viable commercial application.

You may then be able to patent your product or process.

We are able to provide guidance and assistance with the viability and processing of your patent application.

My company creates products for the baby and child industry, what IP rights do I have automatically?

We understand there are many facets to IP law, and all of these are there to help keep your inventions and ideas safe and profitable.

Your automatic rights under UK law are:

Copyright – Applies to all original creations such as artwork, music and original writing.
Design rights – Unregistered designs are protected on the basis of their shape and configuration for between 10 and 15 years, and on the basis of your products appearance for 3 years.

Registering your design will substantially increase the time you receive design protection (up to 25 years of protection) and make the process of pursuing infringers much simpler.

The protections you or your organisation may need will vary depending on your circumstances and what you are wanting to protect. Thankfully that’s where our expert team of intellectual property lawyers can assist you and guide you through the process.

Can you help me protect my IP rights in international baby and child markets?

Expanding internationally is a dream for many businesses, but it runs the risk of bumping in to conflicting intellectual property holders who may have been operating in their domestic market for a long time.

We have experience helping businesses secure a trade mark in other countries in order to enable international expansion. There are also complicated processes for other things such as international patent filing, which it is highly recommended you seek professional advice from experienced solicitors before embarking upon.

If you require assistance with your intellectual property acquisitions and registrations internationally just get in touch and we will do everything we can to help you.

What should I do if someone is using my art without consent?

If an individual or company is using your art without your consent, we recommend collecting as much evidence as possible.

Next, speak to an intellectual property law firm with experience in the art industry. An art lawyer will then assess the details of the case and advise on the best course of action.