Application of Property Rights

Your partner for the application of property rights.

As your strategic partner we help you to secure your competitive advantage with respect to your competitors by filing protective rights. Patents, Trademarks or designs guarantee their owner timely limited monopole, which is crucial for the success of your company.

Due to our long year experience in advising and supporting of clients, from the single inventor to the large company, we are aware of the different needs of our clients and adapt our services and advices to the needs and requirements of your company.

Competitive advantage: IP right

Investments in research and development create innovations in order to be competitively successful nationally and internationally. However when creating technical innovations one must fear that these innovations will be copied by a third party thereby achieving a timely and economic advantage for them. Since successful products and ideas can in principle be copied by anybody if not prohibited by means of an IP right. For this reason, you should secure your investments and create a competitive advantage for yourself by protecting your inventions by IP rights.

As patent attorneys with technical or scientific background, we share your passion for technique and work with the same enthusiasm, the same precision and exceptional performance for the protection of the IP of your company as you for the further development of your products and innovations.
Trusted and intensive teamwork as well as our standards for precise work contribute to the success of our clients and are confirmed through long-lasting relationships with our clients. Irrespective of prosecution, opposition or infringement proceedings, we always are committed to the enforcement and defense of the interests of your company using our knowledge and experience.

Our portfolio includes in particular national and international services in the field of patents, utility models, designs and trademarks, i.e. filing and enforcement of IP rights. In addition, we offer our clients patent legal advice and services in connection with all inquiries in the fields of employer inventor law, copyright and competition law as well as professional searches, expert opinions and IP surveillance.

Patents

A patent protects a technical invention against imitation. The protection period of a patent lasts 20 years beginning with the filing date if it is renewed on a regular basis. Patent protection can be achieved via national patents, a European patent, a unitary patent (not yet available) or an international application.
The national patent results from a national patent application, i.e. filed with the German Patent and Trademark Office. It offers patent protection solely in the respective country, i.e. Germany.

A European patent results from a single European patent application. After grant the European patent application separates into national patents so that with a single application procedure a national patent protection can be achieved in several countries of the European Union.
The European patent with unitary protection also results from a single European patent application, but offers unitarily protection in the participating member states. In contrast to a classical European patent it is not possible to choose single countries.
The International patent application (PCT) does not lead to a patent, but is a preliminary procedure. At a later stage the International patent application can be nationalized/regionalized into national/regional patent applications.
A patent offers its owner the sole right to utilization of the patented invention, so that he has the right to prohibit third parties the use of the invention. The advantage of the patent is that the owner of the invention can utilize the invention himself, grant licenses to third parties, can sell the patent, or can refrain from any utilization (blocking-off patent). The prohibition of use for third parties extends to the production, the offering, bringing onto the market/selling, the use, the possession, and import of the patented goods.

Our services in connection with the filing of patents include:

  • advice prior to filing
  • carrying out prior art searches
  • elaborating patent strategies
  • professional drafting of patent applications
  • filing of patent applications
  • patent prosecution

Utility Models

A Utility Model is a protection right similar to a patent. A Utility Model protects technical inventions against imitation with the exception of methods. The maximal duration of a Utility Model is 10 years and thus shorter than that of a patent. The registration can be achieved in short without an official examination regarding novelty and inventive step. The Applicant thus obtains protection faster than with a patent application.
In connection with the registration of Utility Models our services include, for example:

  • advice prior to filing
  • carrying out of prior art searches
  • drafting and filing of Utility Model Applications

Trade marks

Your trade mark. Your first impression.

A successful product includes a successful name that is connected to the product or the manufacturer – the trade mark. The trade mark accompanies firms in most cases for decades. It is therefore important that a trade mark is protected in the most important markets against misuse and imitation. All signs that are suitable for differentiating goods and services of a company from those of other companies can be protected by a trade mark, i.e. in form of a term, a picture, or a combination of the two and a trade mark can also be a sound or an odour.

Trade mark protection can be achieved by national trade marks or European Union trade marks (formerly known as CTMs), and international trade marks. So the period of protection is 10 years (or rather 20 years in the case of IR marks according to MMA) from the filing date and can be prolonged for a further 10 years by paying a fee as needed.

The national, i.e. German, Trade Mark Office offers unitary protection in the respective country. The request is to be filed with the national office, i.e. with the German Patent and Trademark Office. The European Union Trade Mark offers unitary protection within the entire European Union. It is not possible to select single countries. The application can be filed with the EUIPO.

The International Trade Mark according to the Madrid Agreement (MMA) and the Protocol to the Madrid Agreement (PMMA) offers the opportunity to request trade mark protection for a single or multiple contracting states of the respective agreement.
Our services in connection with trade marks include for example:

  • advice prior to filing
  • carrying out trade mark searches
  • elaborating the trade mark strategy
  • drafting the list of goods and services
  • prosecution of national and international trade marks
  • trade mark oppositions

Design

A design protects the overall appearance of a product or a pattern. It is of particular important that are bought due to their outer appearance. A design has to be new and characteristic. The maximum period of protection of a design is 25 years from the filing date and has to be prolonged every five years. The protection begins with the registration of the design in the Register.

A national design offers unitary protection in a specific country. A Community Design offers protection in the entire European Union and can be achieved by registration or by use. A registered Community Design has to be filed with the EUIPO. An international design can be filed with the WIPO according to the Hague Agreement (HMA) and offers design protection in one or more contracting states of the agreement.

Our services in connection with designs include for example:

  • advice prior to filing
  • elaboration of filing strategies
  • prosecution

Locations

Wuppertal

  • Schloßbleiche 20
    42103 Wuppertal
  • 0202 / 24 58 00
  • wuppertal@solf-zapf.de
  • Fax: 0202 / 24 58 030

Locations

Munich

  • Candidplatz 15
    81543 München
  • 089 / 62 42 930
  • munich@solf-zapf.de
  • Fax: 089 / 62 42 93 22

Locations

Cologne

  • Am Kabellager 11
    51063 Köln
  • 0221 / 71 79 05 00
  • cologne@solf-zapf.de
  • Fax: 0221 / 71 79 05 10

Dr. Solf & Zapf

  • Patent attorneys and attorneys at law PartG mbB
  • Wuppertal | Munich | Cologne
About us
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  • Dr. Solf & Zapf Patent- und Rechtsanwalts PartG mbB 2020