Intellectual Property

SWS Lawyers has a dedicated 'innovation team' comprising lawyers with company director, in-house counsel and long standing professional experience in the commercialisation of intellectual property assets. One of our team was most recently Associate General Counsel at a global medical devices company and another team member is currently a director of a global biotechnology manufacturing business.  We can assist clients from the very early stages of ideas and concepts through to the more mature stages of technology development and the commercialisation journey.  We understand the challenges faced by entrepreneurs and innovators and we take a long term view of the commercialisation process.

We offer a dedicated intellectual property registration and advisory service. This service is supported by a specialist consultant with more than 30 years’ experience and a team of lawyers who work on discrete but related aspects of the registration and intellectual property strategy implementation processes.  Where highly specialist input is required, our team works with a select group of trade mark and patent attorneys to source that advice.

The depth of expertise in the SWS Lawyers team means that we can bring in other skill sets and expertise as and when these are needed. For example we can help with business structuring, employment arrangements and shareholding arrangements, as well as investment, fundraising and ultimately exit (including business sales, share sales and IPOs).

If difficulties arise we are able to draw on a depth of experience in managing trade marks, passing off and related brand protection disputes and resolution processes. Our lawyers have acted for a wide variety of different clients in IP litigation matters.  These range from large ASX companies to private clients and across industry sectors including FMCG, telecommunications, manufacturing, tourism and marketing.  We also have experience managing patent litigation.  This experience includes 'whole of enterprise' cases for private manufacturing clients.