Intellectual Property – Belfast

Protecting and maximising the value of intellectual property has never been more critical. With rapid innovation cycles, increased digitalisation, and heightened cross‑border activity, organisations face escalating pressure to safeguard their IP assets while enabling commercial growth. For over 17 consecutive years, we’ve ranked Band 1 for Intellectual Property in Northern Ireland. This reflects our longstanding market leadership and trusted delivery on complex, business‑critical matters.

Businesses across all sectors are navigating greater IP risk than ever. From safeguarding brands in an online environment, to managing multi‑jurisdictional disputes, to ensuring that technology, data and innovation strategies comply with evolving legal frameworks, IP challenges are multifaceted and fast‑moving. Limited internal resources, the rising threat of counterfeiting, and the need to commercialise IP responsibly can expose organisations to reputational, financial, and operational risk. Clients need practical, sector‑specific advice that protects their IP while supporting strategic growth and innovation.

Our Intellectual Property team provides specialist, end‑to‑end support across the full IP lifecycle - creation, protection, commercialisation and enforcement. We combine deep technical expertise with an understanding of the commercial realities facing our clients, who range from international blue‑chip companies to entrepreneurial and established local businesses.

We advise on all aspects of IP protection and portfolio management, including trade mark and design prosecution, trade mark oppositions, defence, and cancellations, domain name recovery, anti‑counterfeiting and customs notices. Our team conducts IP audits and due diligence, and supports clients with licensing, IP assignments, R&D collaborations, joint ventures, franchising, sponsorship and merchandising, as well as the IP components of corporate transactions and restructurings.

On contentious matters, we have extensive experience representing clients before the High Court of Northern Ireland in relation to trade mark, patent, copyright and design infringement, passing‑off actions, urgent injunctions, database rights, trade secret claims, and multi‑jurisdictional disputes.

Working closely with specialist counsel, we deliver decisive, commercially aligned outcomes.  Our clients rely on us because we combine technical excellence with a proven track record of securing favourable outcomes across both contentious and non‑contentious matters.

If you are looking to protect, enforce or commercialise your IP assets, our team is ready to help. Get in touch to discuss your objectives and explore how we can support you at every stage of the IP lifecycle.

our team has extensive experience acting for clients before the UK Intellectual Property Office, EU Intellectual Property Office, and World Intellectual Property Office, including in trade mark and design prosecution, trade mark oppositions, defence, and cancellations; we also advise clients more generally on brand policing, online takedowns and domain name recovery, anti‑counterfeiting, and customs notices.

our team regularly undertakes IP portfolio audits and due diligence for our clients, acts for them in licensing and cross‑licensing, IP assignments, R&D collaborations, joint ventures, sponsorship and merchandising, franchising, IP aspects of corporate transactions and restructurings, confidential information, and trade secrets governance.

our team has extensive experience representing our client’s interests before the High Court of Northern Ireland in relation to patent, copyright, design and trade mark infringement, passing off actions, urgent injunctions, copyright and database right disputes, trade secret and breach of confidence claims, and strategy for multi‑jurisdictional matters. We work closely with specialist counsel to deliver decisive, commercially‑aligned outcomes.

our team works hand-in-hand with our market-leading data protection and technology lawyers on complex legal issues where data, technology, and IP meet, such as at the intersection of copyright and artificial intelligence. Our diverse offering means that we can advise our clients on IP issues that have complex, multifaceted solutions. 

Experience

  • Acting for a blue-chip social media company

    In defending against an AI-related claim for copyright infringement before the High Court of Northern Ireland.

  • Instructed by a leading sports organisation

    In the management of its IP portfolio and negotiation of several high-value agreements, including various sponsorship agreements and a stadium naming rights agreement.

  • Instructed by a household name cosmetics brand

    In the exploitation and commercialisation of its IP rights through several agreements with high-profile brand ambassadors and influencers.

  • Acting for an established whiskey distillery

    In a trade mark infringement dispute before the High Court of Northern Ireland, UK Intellectual Property Office, and the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court.

  • Instructed by a global child paraphernalia brand

    In its trade mark and design prosecution work at various intellectual property registries, and advising on its design rights, brand licenses, and franchising deals.

  • One of the largest scientific research organisations in Northern Ireland

    In the drafting and negotiation of a multitude of collaboration and research agreements, each of which involved complex IP arrangements.