The term ‘Intellectual Property’ can be a bit daunting as it can refer to many different types of intellectual creations that arise in many ways. Check out our cheat sheet below to help you easily and quickly identify the different types of intellectual property rights.
Patents
If you have created a new product or process that solves an existing problem, you may be able to protect this by filing for patent rights.
Criteria for protection:
- Novelty
- Inventive Step (non-obvious step in the field); and
- Industrial Applicability (it must work)
A patent can grant exclusive protection of your invention for up to 20 years (renewable annually) and it is territorial (only protected in the jurisdiction in which it is filed).
Things to note about filing for patent protection:
- Patent protection is time sensitive and must be filed within a specified period (typically 12 months, depending on jurisdiction) after disclosure.
- Ensure you own the invention before applying. Ownership of a patent depends on a host of different factors.
- If you do not meet the ‘inventive step’ criteria you can apply for a Utility Certificate/Utility Model. A Utility Model can give you up to 10 years of protection.
Trademarks
If you have a distinctive name, logo or slogan, you may be able to file for trademark protection. In some jurisdictions, such as Trinidad and Tobago, you can also file for trademark protection of a sound, scent, colour, shape etc.
Criteria for protection:
- Distinctiveness
Trademarks are protected for a period of 10 years and are renewable indefinitely.
Things to note before filing for protection:
- Trademarks are protected for specified goods and/or services.
- Words/images which are descriptive of the goods and/or services being applied for are not registrable.
- Common words in the industry of the goods and/or services applied for are not registrable
Industrial Designs
If you have created a new good that has a unique ornamental aspect- you may be able to protect it by industrial design rights.
Criteria for protection:
- Novelty
An industrial design can be protected for up to 15 years (renewable every 5 years) and is territorial (only protected in the jurisdiction in which it is filed).
Things to note about filing for industrial design protection:
- Industrial design protection is time sensitive and must be filed within a specified period (typically 12 months, depending on jurisdiction) after disclosure.
- Industrial design rights only protect the design exactly as they are filed.
- Many jurisdictions allow multiple variations of the design to be filed (unlimited variations are available in Trinidad and Tobago) so it is better to file as many variations as possible.
Copyright
If you have created any original literary, musical or artistic work such as a painting, photograph, sculpture, architectural design, film, music etc, you may have copyright subsisting in your work.
Criteria for protection:
- Originality
Copyright subsists automatically when the work is created and is protected for life of the author plus 50 years at minimum (some jurisdictions have extended this time period).
Things to note about copyright protection:
- The author of the work is determined by a number of factors so authors should be clear on ownership rights before the work is created.
- While protection is automatic, authors should take active steps to assert their protection
- Although the economic rights of the author expires 50 years after death (depending on jurisdiction), the author retains moral rights in the work (right to be name as author; right not to have the work distorted).
