As a basic rule you should NEVER DISCUSS YOUR IDEA WITH ANYBODY without a signed confidentiality agreement in place. We can provide one for you to use.
All inventors are concerned that their idea might be “stolen” and want to protect it. There are several, more practical reasons, for protecting your idea particularly if you are considering licensing it to a large company. However, it is important that you do not rush into anything, or commit significant funds, without a well thoughtout plan - an “Intellectual Property Protection” (IPP) strategy. This will ensure that you have the right protection in place at the right time at the right cost. There are several types of IPP and full protection of your ideas might involve a number of them:
More information and an Intellectual Property Plan template are available in our
Qest Guide – Protecting Your Idea.
Alternatively you might wish to contact one of the following organisations:
Chartered Instituteof Patent Attorneys
95 Chancery Lane, LONDON, WC2A 1DT
Tel: 020 7405 9450 • Fax: 020 7430 0471
E-mail: mail@cipa.org.uk • Web: www.cipa.org.uk
Law Society
8 Dormer Place LEAMINGTON SPACV32 5AE
Tel: 0870 606 6575
Web: www.lawsociety.org.uk
Patent Office
Concept House, Cardiff Road, NEWPORT, NP10 8QQ
Tel: 0845 9 500 505• Fax: 01633 813600
Email: enquiries@patent.gov.uk • Web: www.patent.gov.uk
Protecting your idea.