Intellectual Property (IP)

Lydian’s IP team is here to help you build your brand and take your business to the next level. 

Together with you, Lydian’s IP team will devise tailor-made strategies to best protect your corporate image and brands and achieve your goals in the real, digital or virtual world (metaverse, NFT…). In that respect, we do not only provide services regarding trademark registrations as explained hereafter but also advice on the selection of the trade name and domain names in order to secure and strengthen the branding. 

Lydian can offer you all the services relating to the registration of trademarks with the assistance of external service providers if needed to be more efficient and less expensive :

• Performing anteriority searches, 
• Filing within Benelux or in various countries, 
• Assisting in case of possible provisional refusal ;
• Assisting in case of possible opposition proceedings, 
• Performing a renewal of the trademark registrations.  

In a second phase, Lydian’s IP team further assists its clients with possible monitoring activities, portfolio management, defense in case of IP infringement (see below f), contract drafting (see below e) in view of the exploitation of the rights and further building of a brand in advertising campaigns (see below d). 

Whether it is dealing with trade secrets, know-how or applying the latest copyright, design or patent legislation, Lydian’s IP team is here to give the best advice for your creations and innovations. 

We can advise you on the protection and eligibility requirements for copyright, trade secrets, design, database, patent rights and plant verities and identify which IP rights are the most relevant for your products or services.

Lydian’s IP team can help you establish ownership of IP protected creation or invention and identify ways to generate added value for your business. 

Lydian’s IP team can also assist you to determine the best strategy to protect an invention, namely to keep it secret and consider a protection via trade secrets and / or to file a patent application in one or various countries (in the latter case with the assistance of external patent attorneys). 

We can assist you to develop all the necessary policies and procedures to preserve and protect your trade secrets and know-how, beginning from the initial creation of an idea (possible filing of a e-deposit) through its development and commercialization while ensuring the detection and prevention of trade secrets theft. 

Bringing new products and services to the market requires a deep understanding of the regulatory environment in which they are obligated to be designed, manufactured and sold. 

Lydian can assist you during all steps of the process from the design to the launch of your products and services. 

We are frequently asked to provide advice and review of product labelling and packaging (mandatory, customary information, warranty, repair or recycling obligations, language, support…) by companies seeking to introduce their new products and services into the Belgian market. These questions might be challenging given the fast evolving legislation in terms of product liability, sustainability, digital and green transition and circular economy.

Lydian’s IP team can assist you with the launching of your products or services offline (on your own or via a distribution network) or online. 

In today’s internet-based society, more and more transactions happen indeed via the internet and e-commerce. This raises numerous questions with regard to the probatory force of e-mails, electronic signature, the consequences of concluding contracts with consumers or undertakings via the internet,…. 

Lydian’s IP team deals with these matters on a daily basis by, for example, by drafting and reviewing general terms and conditions, disclaimer, terms of use…

Lydian’s IP team’s practice encompasses the full range of areas linked to the launching and marketing of products and services, including advertising as well as lotteries, contest and gambling.

Would you like to publish an advertising campaign on the internet, social media, TV, newspapers, magazines, the team can provide you with the following services :

• Pre-publication advice and clearance to check that your advertising 
  • is not misleading or does not compare unlawfully the products of a competitor, 
  • does not violate any guidelines or code specific to your sector or a specific category of public, 
  • complies with the rules applicable to influencers and image rights...
• Drafting and review of contract with content owners, advertising agencies, actors, artists, publishers, TV and radio broadcasters, as well as TV providers and internet companies.

We are aware that an advertising campaign is for sure not the only way to promote your products and services. The marketing of your product or service can occur via your website – eshop, product placement or metaverse, NFT or the organisation of contest for instance. 

Lydian’s IP team’s can off course advice you as well on the rules applicable to product placement, the emerging regulation on metaverse & NFT and on the different regime applicable to lotteries, contest and gambling. 

Lydian’s IP team assist you in drafting, reviewing and negotiating all the necessary agreements for the creation, exploitation, financing and transfer of your intellectual property rights. 

More particularly the team can assist you in negotiating agreements of all types, like for instance:

• Non disclosure agreement, 
• Joint venture agreement, 
• R&D agreement,
• IP and confidentiality provisions in employment agreement or consulting agreement, 
• License (and manufacturing) agreement,
• Distribution agreement,
• Publishing agreement, 
• Co-existence agreement,
• Complex broadcasting agreements with collecting societies and broadcasters, 
• Production financing,
• Subsidies / grant agreement
• Pledge agreement,
• Transfer agreement. 

We are used to negotiate tricky provisions like on the ownership of the IP (back and foreground) rights, scope of use, consequences in case of early termination of the agreement, insolvency, liability, warranty, remuneration and validity of the IP rights. 

For some of these agreements, Lydian’s IP team will work in (close) collaboration with other departments like employment, finance and corporate. 

In order to best defend your interests, Lydian IP team focuses on determining together with you from the outset what would be the most suitable litigation or negotiation strategy, taking into account legal analysis but also commercial and business priorities.

Lydian’s IP team has experience in assisting clients before all judicial courts (civil and criminal) and arbitral tribunals in Belgium, including in summary, injunction proceedings, attachment proceedings, and proceedings on the merits, both before the First Instance Courts and the Courts of Appeal as well as before the administrative authorities such as the Benelux Office for Intellectual Property, the European Union Intellectual Property Office and WIPO (for domain names). 

We assist you in all domestic and multi-jurisdictional matters relating to :

• the enforcement of your IP rights (custom surveillance), 
• the offline or online infringement of your IP rights including against intermediaries,
• cybersquatting, 
• conflicts between trade names (or other (earlier) rights) and trademarks, 
• the validity and revocation of your IP rights, 
• the theft of your trade secrets or know-how, 
• unfair competition practices and advertising disputes including notably misleading advertising,
• a refusal of a right to reply and possible defamation or breach to the reputation due to the publication of a press release for instance. 

Lydian’s IP team comprises experienced Dutch and French-speaking litigators who can handle cases before the Belgian courts in their native language.

Clients appreciate its pragmatic and (non) aggressive approach whenever it is needed or demanded.

In addition to being skilled litigators, we are also experienced negotiators and we always strive to achieve the best possible result for our clients and to settle quickly if such solution is more appropriate.  In most cases, we send first cease and desist letters or take-down notices before starting a proceedings.