What is Intellectual Property

Intellectual property encompasses all registered or unregistered design rights, trade marks, Australian or foreign patents, copyright, confidential information, trade or business names, database rights, know-how, technology and other intellectual property rights whether capable of registration or not in any country.

The legal definition for Intellectual Property ("hereinafter referred to as 'IP'") is that "it is a group of rights created by law that afford protection to creative and intellectual effort, it represents the property of your mind or intellect".

IP rights are inherently invisible, but are very valuable assets provided that they are properly identified and protected. They are created or acquired by a business on a daily basis and are often overlooked because they are intangible assets. Like tangible assets that are vigorously identified, valued and reported in the balance sheet, IP assets must be systematically identified, protected and maintained to maximise their intrinsic value and strategic advantage and to minimise the risks of third-party abuse or inadvertent loss.