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United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Key definition
Intellectual property definition What does Intellectual property mean? Intellectual property describes intangible legal rights in creative, technical and branding outputs used and enforced in commercial practice, often abbreviated to IP or IPR. In the UK and Ireland the term is descriptive rather than a single statutory definition; discrete rights arise under specific regimes, typically including copyright, patents, trade marks, registered and unregistered designs, database right, trade secrets and confidential information, and the common law tort of passing off. These rights are territorial, generally time‑limited (trade secrets/confidential information can subsist indefinitely if secrecy is maintained), and confer exclusive rights that can be licensed, assigned, charged as security and...
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Security over intellectual property under English law: lender-focused practical guide to due diligence, creation, registration and enforcement across patents, trade marks, copyright and designs
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Practice notes
Introduction
It is ever more accepted that every enterprise holds and deploys some form of IP. Financiers active in markets with IP-heavy companies are paying closer attention to making sure their collateral captures the worth embodied in that IP. The legal position on taking security over IP remains unsettled, requiring lenders to navigate ambiguity. Moreover, charging IP rights can be expensive to establish and challenging to realise. A funder must begin by pinpointing and assessing the borrower’s IP. It should differentiate categories of IP, for instance rights with proprietary attributes and those arising under contracts. It should also appreciate that a firm’s IP is typically interconnected, such as a patent and the related Know-how that gives the patent practical value. Finance lawyers must likewise consider the intrinsic nature of the IP and the setting from which its value derives. A central issue is how the lender could monetise the IP if the security is enforced. This assessment underpins any practical and effective approach to enforcing the security. Resolving that in each situation demands insight into how the borrower conducts its business and the role IP plays within it...
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Web page updated on 22/05/2026
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I, [ name ], of [ address ], solemnly and sincerely state that: [ Matters to be verified, set out in numbered paragraphs ] I make this solemn statement in good conscience, believing it to be true, and pursuant to the provisions of the Statutory Declarations Act 1835. DECLARED at [ details ] this [ day ] day of [ month and year ] Before me ................................................................................ [ signature of the person before whom the declaration is made ] A [ commissioner for oaths OR [ solicitor OR [ insert other qualification ] ] authorised to administer oaths ]...
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