Yorkshire forced rhubarb, grown by candlelight in the dark sheds of the Rhubarb Triangle between Wakefield, Morley and Rothwell, has a protected designation of origin, which means a grower in the Netherlands cannot call their crop by that name. It is the most famous piece of intellectual property in the Wakefield district, and a reminder that IP is not only for technology companies. Pontefract's liquorice makers, the breweries and food producers around Castleford, the engineers and manufacturers on the industrial estates and the designers and makers drawn to the Hepworth and the Yorkshire Sculpture Park all own things that can be protected and copied.
An intellectual property solicitor in Wakefield will identify the right tools. Trade marks, registered with the UK Intellectual Property Office, protect a business name, logo or product name; design rights protect the shape and look of a product; copyright protects artwork, photographs, software and writing automatically; patents protect new inventions, and for those a patent attorney does the drafting while the solicitor looks after the contracts and any dispute. Confidentiality agreements, licences, distribution agreements and website terms are the everyday documents, and a food manufacturer supplying the supermarkets will need them in order.
When something is copied, a letter before action from a solicitor settles most Wakefield disputes, often with a licence or an undertaking. The few that go to court are usually brought in the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court, a specialist court with capped costs where damages cannot exceed £500,000, and larger claims can be heard in Leeds rather than London.
Registrations and standard agreements are normally quoted as fixed fees in Wakefield; contested work is charged by the hour.
The intellectual property solicitors who cover Wakefield appear below, verified firms at the top. For background, read the guide to intellectual property law and the explainer on IP solicitors, and for company and contract work see the business law solicitors in Wakefield page.
