commercial

We advise our clients on a wide range of commercial and legal issues. Our services include contracts, intellectual property, e-commerce, telecoms and IT, outsourcing and franchising, privacy and data protection.

Commercial Contracts

Contracts are at the heart of most commercial transactions and business relationships. We regularly negotiate drafts, act on a wide range of contracts, and advise on the best solution in relation to disputes - often within tight timescales. Our commercial group is experienced in working with clients to consider all the issues involved in drafting both bespoke and standard form contracts. Whether you are thinking of outsourcing part of your business, appointing or acting as an agent or distributor, or considering whether franchise is the way forward, our specialist lawyers will be able to help you by providing pragmatic and cost-effective advice.

No business can avoid the occasional dispute with the businesses that it contracts with whether they be its suppliers, purchasers or otherwise. Whilst we recognise that disputes are a way of life we do not believe that expensive court proceedings are the best way to resolve them. We provide sensible commercial advice from the very outset of a matter to allow our clients to reach sensible commercial solutions.

Intellectual Property

A survey conducted for the Patent Office has revealed that a substantial number of British businesses do not know who would own the intellectual property rights coming out of collaboration, subcontracting, consultancy or other types of arrangement with other businesses. They risk losing their rights and jeopardising the value of their businesses by neglecting their intellectual property rights – from brand names, works of art, films, music and books, to scientific processes, computer programs, databases, industrial designs and confidential business secrets. Whilst some protection of these rights is granted by the law without you needing to do anything, other protection needs positive action – such as registering of trade marks, design rights, patents and domain names.

We advise on a range of Intellectual Property (IP) issues, including:

carrying out IP audits to help you to identify your intellectual property assets;
helping you to develop and exploit your IP assets by identifying the right method for you to collaborate with other business partners, whether this is research and development, licensing, sale, distribution or franchising; and by giving advertising and branding advice;
protecting your IP assets from counterfeiting, passing off or any other infringement, and assist you in enforcing your rights when they are threatened;
providing portfolio management to help you to manage your IP assets, including working with experts to determine the value of your IP assets;
advising on the implications of trading on the web; and
advising in relation to media issues, including content acquisition and contracts with actors.

We can help you to establish what intellectual property rights you have and ensure that how they are managed integrates properly with your company’s corporate strategy, whether your market is in the UK, the EU, the US or other parts of the world.

Ecommerce

E-commerce has become part of our everyday lives. Whether you are a start-up, an established business or a service provider, our lawyers can:

help you to choose, register and protect domain names;
ensure that when you trade electronically you do so in compliance with the latest domestic, EU and other legislation, with clear and effective terms and conditions, and with a clear e-mail and access to website policy;
advise you in connection with the main services that you are likely to require from internet service providers, and the key issues which you should consider when contracting with them; and
help with the design and development of your website and with the arrangements relating to its hosting and maintenance.

IT & Telecoms

Our IT and Telecoms group is growing fast. Our lawyers are experienced negotiators, some of whom have in-house experience, who understand the business pressures of both suppliers and customers. We advise on:

outsourcing, insourcing and facilities management;
technology procurement including software development, systems integration, turnkey agreements, licensing and reseller agreements, hardware sale, purchase or lease, disaster recovery/business continuity arrangements, and support and maintenance agreements;
setting up and operating electronic trading marketplaces;
major telecom deals and projects including content creation, acquisition and licensing; and
mobile and electronic payment.

Privacy & Data Protection

Whatever the size of your business, our lawyers can:

help you comply with your statutory obligations in your day-to-day business activities as a data controller under the Data Protection Act;

help you conform to data protection legislation when personal data is being processed via your website;

help you to prepare privacy policies, CCTV policies and website registration forms;

advise you on your data protection obligations where personal data is used for marketing purposes;

help you to negotiate data processing agreements where you appoint a third party to process personal data on your behalf;

carry out a data protection audit of your business, and provide advice if your levels of data protection compliance need to be improved;

advise private sector clients on the implications of the Freedom of Information Act on your dealings with public bodies; and

help public sector clients to understand your statutory obligations under the Freedom of Information Act and how to structure commercial relationships with private sector partners in light of those obligations.