Clients include
- Gocompare.com
- Hydralogica Limited
- S4C
Our Creative Industries team is made up of lawyers specialising in intellectual property, media law and dispute resolution.
Together, they help harness business potential by protecting brand identity and exploiting opportunities.
The team advises young through to mature businesses across the UK including a number of independent television production companies. A fully bilingual service is available to Welsh-speaking clients.
We work with clients in film and TV, broadcasting, gaming, leisure, entertainment, sport and online retail.
Specialisms
- copyright
- trade marks
- patent registration and infringement
- registered and unregistered designs
- passing off
- know how and trade secrets
- brand protection
- domain name disputes
- distribution, licence and franchise agreements
- merchandising agreements
- co-operation agreements
- research agreements
- IP audits for investors
- equity investments
- online terms and conditions
- privacy policies
- data protection
- anti-counterfeiting
- protecting confidential information
- licensing and assignment of rights
- group structures
- ownership and licensing disputes
- IP strategies
- contractual disputes
- copyright infringement
- registered and unregistered design right infringement
- trademark infringement
- patent infringement
- defamation (libel and slander)
- data protection
- debt recovery
- breach of restrictive covenants in employment contracts
- breach of directors duties
- emergency injunctions
- professional negligence claims
- directors’ disqualification
- shareholder disputes
- mediation and alternative dispute resolution
- defamation
- copyright
- breach of privacy
- breach of confidence
- malicious falsehood
- acquisition and exploitation of IP rights
- commissions and programme development
- engagement of principal personnel
- rights clearance
Snapshot of our experience
- Acting for clients in their new brand launches and rebranding exercises.
- Acting for a UK plc in a design rights dispute between two high street retailers.
- Helping devise and implement brand protection and defensive strategies, identifying core IP and secondary brands/IP and prioritising protection and defensive action.
- Co-operation agreements between patent holders and trademark holders.
- Advising on the contractual termination of a licence agreement with an exclusive distributor in the US and Canada.
- Advising a syndicate of investors in a proposed £1,000,000 equity investment into a biotechnology business, including IP audit.
- Advising a leading make up brand in respect of trademark protection on their product names and secondary-brand names.
- Advising media companies in respect of merchandising agreements for TV characters and series.
Broadcasting
Sion Clwyd Roberts leads Capital Law’s service provision to S4C and the Wales independent production sector in supplying employment and policy support services, including undertaking industrial negotiations with the technical and talent unions, BECTU, Equity, the Musicians' Union and the Writers' Guild in addition to the provision of advice on working with children, diversity and general conditions of employment. Sion also advises a range of production companies in the commissioning of original works, co-productions, production finance, licensing and distribution.
As a matter of fact...
Head of Employment law, Elin Pinnell, used to be Deputy Chief Executive and Solicitor at the trade association for independent television companies in Wales (“TAC”), and a Board Director at an independent television company. She retains key connections with the major broadcasters in the UK and venture capital companies.
And... Sion Clwyd Roberts is an established media law specialist having spent over 20 years working in the Legal and Business Affairs departments at S4C, HTV, United Broadcasting and Entertainment and ITV.
He is a member of the BAFTA Cymru management committee and former Vice Chairman of the board which established Theatr Genedlaethol Cymru, the Welsh language National Theatre Company of Wales.
For further information, please click here to visit our Intellectual Property page.
