One of the most beneficial things any business can do is to protect their Intellectual Property. Your Intellectual Property isn’t limited to just inventions – it can be your name, your logo, your design, anything that identifies you as you. While you may have some right to use your Intellectual Property by itself, protecting your intangible assets allows you to have the sole legal, enforceable right to be the only one to use them.
In the United States, protecting those Intellectual Property rights involves working with the United States Patent and Trademark Office or the United States Copyright Office. Intellectual Property laws vary from country to country. At the Law Office of S. Grynwajc, we offer transatlantic legal services involving the United States, Canada, and/or Europe. Today we are focusing on how to protect your Intellectual Property in France.
Trademarks
Trademarks can be any word, phrase, symbol, design, or a combination of the above that identifies your goods or services as distinct from everyone else in the market. In order to register your trademark in France, it must be distinctive, lawful, honest, and not already trademarked by someone else.
Trademarks can be registered with the National Institute of Industrial Property for French trademarks, the European Union Intellectual Property Office for European trademarks, or the World Intellectual Property Organization for international trademarks. Protection lasts ten years from your application date, but it can be indefinitely renewed.
Copyrights
Copyrights protect original artistic works in tangible forms of expression. Copyrights can range from books, movies, and music to mobile apps, photographs, and architecture. In France, copyrights are automatically protected by both patrimonial and moral rights. Patrimonial rights give the estate of the author sole legal right to reproduce or profit from the work until seventy years after the death of the author. Moral rights give the author the legal right to have their work attributed to them and respected. Moral rights are eternally granted and cannot be transferred onto another. Both of these protections are automatically granted in France and do not need to be applied for.
Patents
Patents protect inventions and innovations. In order to be protected, patents must be new, inventive, useful in their industry, and legally accepted. Patents can be registered through the National Industrial Property Office for French patents, the European Patent Office for European patents, or the World Intellectual Property Organization for international patents. Patent protections are eligible for twenty years from the application date to receive the patent.
Designs
Designs (known under French law as “dessins et modèles”) are offered unique protection in France. In order to be protected, a design must be original and have an element beyond just the product it is advertising. For instance, if your cell phone company’s logo design is just a picture of a cell phone, it could not be a protected design. French designs can be registered with the National Institute of Industrial Property, or can attract EU protection through registration as “community designs” with the European Union Intellectual Property Office. Unregistered designs in France may still be offered some protections under Copyright Law.
Databases
Databases are a significant undertaking to create. They are given specific protection (separate from Copyrights) under French law. You can read more about France’s unique protection of databases on our Blog.
Ask For Help
The Law Office of S. Grynwajc, PLLC is one of the only law firms in the world licensed to practice in the United States, Canada, and Europe. If you are looking to break into the French market, check out our guide for entrepreneurs ready to expand. If you would like to protect your French Intellectual Property, or for any other transatlantic legal services, contact the Law Office of S. Grynwajc, PLLC today! We can help you think globally and act locally.