Intellectual Property

Our highly regarded intellectual property department offers thorough, precise, and expert legal services across a broad spectrum of both contentious and non-contentious intellectual property matters, positioning our intellectual property team at the forefront of enforcing, registering, protecting, and managing intellectual property assets in Cyprus, the EU and globally. The department, which serves and assists a plethora of reputable tech companies, startups, video game developers and other relevant players, has been also recognised and highly endorsed by leading international directories such as Legal500.

The firm’s expertise spans a wide range of intellectual property aspects, including registration, acquisition, licensing, renewal, prosecution, granting, and maintenance (as applicable) of the following:

• trademarks;
• tradenames;
• copyright;
• patents and technology;
• domain names;
• IP Box Regime; and
• industrial designs;

Our intellectual property team’s experience also extends to providing advice and representation in legal proceedings and disputes, involving also injunctive relief, related to civil and criminal liability. This includes disputes regarding online enforcement, trademark infringement and passing-off claims, licensing agreements, software developments, and cease-and-desists procedures. The firm has been successfully involved in the largest, most high value and complex IP cases in Cyprus in the last years (some examples are outlined below).

Our intellectual property department stays closely informed of ongoing legal developments at the EU level that impact intellectual property law, as well as the Cyprus’ favourable regime in the intellectual property sector, offering customised and up-to-date legal services and advice, tailored to the needs of our clients.

Some recent examples of related work handled by our firm includes:

• Assisted numerous clients with regards to the IP Box Regime
• Advised one of the leading global chocolate brands on IP matters in relation to their launch of new products and on potential trademark infringement by another competitor of an existing product
• Advised Primetel plc, the 2^nd largest telecom company in Cyprus, on trademark and complex IP issues. The firm through the issuance of dynamic blocking injunctions took the largest ever step in Cyprus in combatting live streaming of online sports events. Dynamic blocking injunction constitutes novel tools in the global fight against piracy.
• Represented an independent development studio, in a dispute with a reputable cross-platform game publisher in relation to one of the most successful racing games whereby the firm secured ex parte interim injunctions aimed at safeguarding the survival of the Game by prohibiting the Defendants from publishing the Game and Bundle ID, but also prohibiting the Defendants from producing and/or developing and/or distributing a clone or a copy of the Game. The case raised novel legal issues concerning the functionality of app-stores and the use of injunctions to safeguard the continuation of the distribution to the game to its users.
• Represented a group company, a leading global developer and publisher of educational apps, in successfully defending against urgent claims of passing off and copyright infringement brought by competitors seeking removal of materials from online platforms. Our IP and Dispute Resolution teams acted swiftly on complex, high stakes-matters to protect the client’s valuable goodwill and successfully
• Advised conglomerates on complex IP matters including registrations of patents, enforcement and trademark infringement, etc
• Providing ongoing advice on vast range of IP matters to reputable organisations such as JD Group, Fattal Group/Leonardo Hotels, Kuehne+Nagel, etc.
• Submitting tax rulings before the local tax authorities for queries relating to IP and the IP Box

We are proud to count some of the largest multinational tech organisations, financial institutions and HNWI whom we advise on an impressive variety of IP matters (both domestic and international cross border).

Lastly, as already noted, our intellectual property department (and the firm/members) has earned a strong reputation, consistently ranked by prominent directories such as Chambers and Partners (Tier 1 in “High Wealth Law”), Legal 500 (Tier 1 in different areas), Lexology, Legal (WWL), IFLR and BestLawyers. As regards the IP department, it also achieved an outstanding rank by Legal500 (Band 2), with client particularly recognising our team for “technical skill with genuine care and consistent delivery of excellent results” and “responsiveness, accuracy and ethical dedication, particularly excelling in IP and litigation, supported by advanced use of technology”.

For further information or in case you have any legal issues, please contact us at: info@erotocritou.com