law-ip

Intellectual Property Analysis

Overview

IP law protects creations of the mind through four main mechanisms: patents (inventions), trademarks (brand identifiers), copyrights (creative works), and trade secrets (confidential business information). Each has different requirements, scope, duration, and costs.

Framework

IRON LAW: Match the Protection to the Asset

A brand name is protected by TRADEMARK, not copyright.
Software source code is protected by COPYRIGHT, not patent (usually).
A manufacturing process is protected by PATENT or TRADE SECRET.
Using the wrong mechanism leaves the asset unprotected.

The Four IP Types

Type	Protects	Requirements	Duration	Registration
Patent	Novel, non-obvious, useful inventions	Must be new, inventive, industrially applicable	20 years from filing	Required (申請制)
Trademark	Brand names, logos, slogans that identify source	Must be distinctive (not generic/descriptive)	10 years, renewable indefinitely	Required for full protection
Copyright	Original creative works (text, code, art, music)	Must be original expression (not ideas or facts)	Life + 50 years (Taiwan)	Automatic (no registration needed)
Trade Secret	Confidential business information with economic value	Must be secret, have value from secrecy, reasonable efforts to maintain secrecy	Indefinite (as long as secret is kept)	No registration — protect through NDAs and access controls

IP Audit Steps

1. Inventory: What potentially protectable assets does the organization have?
2. Classify: Which IP type fits each asset?
3. Assess current protection: Is each asset already protected? How?
4. Identify gaps: What's unprotected or under-protected?
5. Prioritize: Which assets are most valuable and most at risk?
6. Recommend: Registration, contractual protection, or operational security for each asset

Key Decision: Patent vs Trade Secret

Factor	Patent	Trade Secret
Can competitors reverse-engineer it?	Yes → Patent	No → Trade Secret may be better
Is independent discovery likely?	Yes → Patent (blocks them)	No → Trade Secret may suffice
How long does the advantage last?	< 20 years → Patent	> 20 years → Trade Secret
Can you detect infringement?	Yes → Patent is enforceable	No → Patent is hard to enforce
Example	Pharmaceutical compound	Coca-Cola recipe

Output Format

# IP Analysis: {Company/Product}

## IP Asset Inventory
| Asset | Type | Current Protection | Gap | Priority |
|-------|------|-------------------|-----|----------|
| {asset} | Patent/TM/Copyright/TS | {status} | {what's missing} | H/M/L |

## Recommendations
1. {asset}: {recommended action} — {rationale}

## Risk Assessment
| Risk | Likelihood | Impact | Mitigation |
|------|-----------|--------|-----------|
| {IP risk} | H/M/L | H/M/L | {action} |

Examples

Correct Application

Scenario: IP audit for a Taiwanese SaaS startup

Asset	Type	Protection	Gap
Brand name "CloudPOS"	Trademark	Not registered	🔴 Register with TIPO immediately
POS algorithm for demand forecasting	Trade Secret or Patent	None	🔴 Decide patent vs trade secret, implement NDAs
Source code	Copyright	Automatic ✓	🟡 Ensure employment contracts assign IP to company
Customer data processing method	Trade Secret	No access controls	🔴 Implement access controls + NDA with employees

Key recommendation: File trademark first (fast, cheap, high risk of name-squatting). Patent decision can wait until product-market fit ✓

Incorrect Application

• "We'll copyright our brand name" → Brand names are protected by trademark, not copyright. Copyright protects creative expression, not identifiers. Violates Iron Law: match protection to asset.

Gotchas

• Ideas are NOT protectable: Copyright protects expression, not ideas. Patent protects specific implementations. The "idea" for an app is not IP — the specific code, design, or invention is.
• Employee-created IP: In Taiwan, IP created by employees during employment generally belongs to the employer (Copyright Act Art. 11, Patent Act Art. 7), but contracts should make this explicit.
• Open source ≠ no IP: Open source software has copyright — the license grants permissions, not ownership. Violating license terms is copyright infringement.
• First-to-file for patents: Taiwan uses first-to-file (not first-to-invent). If you delay filing, a competitor who files first gets the patent even if you invented it earlier.
• This is educational guidance, not legal advice: IP strategy requires consultation with a licensed patent attorney or IP specialist.

References

• For Taiwan TIPO (智慧財產局) filing procedures, see references/tipo-procedures.md