Protecting Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Overseas

US patents only extend to the states within the US. Therefore an inventor who wishes to patent their invention overseas will have to apply for a patent in each of the countries regional offices.

Nearly every country will have their own patent law together with their own regional patent officers. To start the process an inventor will have to fill an application for patent in that country. This will also apply to trademarks, copyrights and other forms of intellectual property in each country.

For IPR toolkits online, log on to the Stopfakes website. This website offers IPR toolkits for more than 20 countries and also provides detailed information on protecting and enforcing IPR in different countries.

Here are some tips to protect your IPR overseas

Start by working with your legal counsel to develop an overall IPR protection strategy.

Create a detailed IPR language for licensing and subcontracting contracts.

Investigate the businesses of potential foreign partners.

New business partners should be registered with Customs and Border Protection;

Ensure that registering patents, trademarks, and copyrights in key foreign markets are secured, specially in markets where infringements are common.

You can register your patent, trademark, or copyright overseas, by looking at a list of contact information for most intellectual property offices worldwide. This can be found via the World Intellectual Property Office. If you require trademark registration in multiple countries the Madrid protocol will make your job a lot easier. You can also find information about filing an international trademark registration on this website.