Freedom to Operate

You cannot exploit the commercial value of your intellectual property unless you have freedom to operate in the market space you wish to occupy.

You need to consider your freedom to operate position at the right stage in the development of your business. You need to be clear about what products or services you want to commercialise before you can conduct an effective search, but you also need to allow enough time to deal with third-party rights or to design around problems before you are disadvantaged commercially.

You may need to conduct further freedom to operate exercises as your business grows. These should reflect your commercial objectives in terms of geography, market sector, and route and timeframe to market.

We can provide advice on all aspects of freedom to operate, taking into account both technical features governing your products or services as well as your commercial objectives.

We will work with you to identify a suitable strategy for assessing your freedom to operate. We can also provide advice on specific third-party rights identified by you. We will keep you updated throughout the process and inform you in advance of the costs involved, advising on issues as they arise.

We can advise on the level of searching and analysis that is appropriate at each stage, taking into account your budgetary constraints.

We have an in-house specialist search team that works under the guidance of our attorneys. We use external search agencies where appropriate. We can also conduct or coordinate status checks and monitor third party intellectual property rights.