Our intellectual property and technology lawyers provide a full range of commercial, intellectual property law, privacy, sourcing and technology law services for leading businesses in Africa.
Intellectual property and technology law is at the core of any major business transaction or strategic dispute and has become one of the most critical legal areas as companies continue to expand and protect their technologies, brands, products, data and services around the globe.
We provide both litigation-related and strategic commercial advice to a wide range of industry sectors, helping clients achieve their objectives wherever they do business.
Companies deal on a daily basis with a myriad of relationships and contracts that bind them to their suppliers, customers, licensors, and distribution and other strategic partners.
Our commercial contracts lawyers advise on all manner of business-critical national and international commercial transactions, among them sales, agency and distribution, e-commerce, joint ventures and collaborations, manufacturing, logistics, and licensing arrangements, and university spinouts, to name a few.
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In today's interconnected world, virtually all companies, their suppliers and their customers are potential targets for cyber-attacks. The risks associated with such incidents require a robust cyber security program in order to manage this fast-changing risk and remain in compliance.
Our lawyers advise on all issues surrounding cyber security, from building cyber resilience, through to incident response, and post-incident remediation, providing a holistic and tailored client service.
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Personal information is an increasingly valuable – and increasingly risky – business asset.
As businesses struggle to keep up with the critical, fast-changing data protection laws and face an increasing risk of serious data breaches, our lawyers can provide sophisticated data management, data security and privacy law advice in Africa and beyond.
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Our lawyers represent clients across the entire spectrum of businesses that have adopted franchising as a means of distribution and cover a broad scope of size and experience, from entrepreneurs and startup companies that are establishing new programs to the largest franchisors, manufacturers and distributors.
Our clients manage franchise networks that range from dozens to thousands of outlets as well as trading globally through online and mobile media channels.
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Our lawyers understand the way the media, sport, gaming and entertainment industries work.
We advise on finance, investment and corporate issues, production and rights acquisition, the exploitation of media rights, the staging and exploitation of live sports and other events, intellectual property protection and enforcement, regulatory and administrative issues, antitrust and competition law, theme park and stadium and arena development and management, and the resolution of disputes.
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Protecting valuable inventions in a highly competitive global environment has become increasingly challenging for multinational businesses.
Our lawyers are adept at developing and implementing patent enforcement strategies for our clients and strategically selecting venues to increase their probability of success. Whether enforcing your patents against others or defending you against claims of patent infringement, we have the experience to help clients succeed.
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Effectively and strategically prosecuting patents is critical to business, especially for innovative companies.
Our patent lawyers regularly handle patent prosecution for clients, including major global corporations, emerging companies and innovative institutions such as manufacturers, service providers, universities and other law firms. We also advise clients on how to maximize their business returns by creating and managing their patent portfolios.
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Our technology transactions and strategic sourcing lawyers focus on the development, protection, exploitation and use of intellectual property and technology-related assets through the stages of a company's growth, as well as the sourcing of strategic assets and services for use in a company's operations.
We advise clients in core areas such as cloud computing, e-commerce, IP development, licensing, open source, outsourcing, procurement, joint ventures, technology transactions and telecommunications, among others.
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Communications plays a critical role in the economies of all countries around the world, and its importance is only increasing with the rapid development of new technologies and products that revolutionize how people – and devices – communicate.
Our telecom lawyers have in-depth knowledge of the commercial, transactional, technical, legal and regulatory issues associated with providing telecommunications services and products, including emerging IoT devices and capabilities.
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With increasing globalization it is difficult for companies to know where their next IP issue may arise.
Our lawyers can help you manage your trademarks, designs and copyright in Africa and beyond. We work on notable matters in Africa and beyond and pride ourselves on giving practical and commercial advice to our clients.
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Experience has included advising:
- IBL, the biggest conglomerate in Mauritius, on data privacy matters as well as conducting training for its staff.
- Omnicane Group in conducting a data privacy compliance exercise.
- Harel Mallac Group in training staff on matters of data privacy.
- Manchester United on trademark issues in Mauritius.
On 28 January 2021, the data privacy communities of the world celebrated the Data Protection Day which is an international effort to create awareness about the importance of respecting privacy, safeguarding data and enabling trust.
The Financial Services Commission (FSC) has issued a Consultation Paper in relation to the introduction of a regulatory framework for Robotic and Artificial Intelligence Enabled Advisory Services (hereinafter RAIEAS). RAIEAS was coined in the National Budget of 2019/2020 and the Finance (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2020 added RAIEAS as a financial business activity in Schedule 2 of the Financial Services Act requiring a licence from the FSC. The aim of the Consultation Paper, which is inspired from approaches and models implemented by other jurisdictions, is to invite views and comments from relevant professionals, the industry and the public at large.
P2P lending has, worldwide, been hailed as an innovative solution that democratises financing. Start-ups and small entrepreneurs have typically relied on bank finance to grow. But they present risks that banks are not always prepared to take — at least not cheaply. Online platforms that connect borrowers directly with investors bypass the problem of getting bank financing.