IP due diligence

The agreed review can cover registrations, ownership, licenses, development contracts, disputes and the relationship between the assets and the business. Its depth follows the transaction and the available evidence. We state the scope, assumptions and unresolved questions so the findings can support a commercial decision.

A register entry may not tell the full ownership story. Founders, employees, contractors, universities and earlier group companies may have contributed to an asset. We trace relevant contracts and transfers to identify missing assignments, consent requirements or competing claims.

Not automatically. Owning a patent or other right does not itself establish freedom to use a product without infringing third-party rights. A freedom-to-operate review is a separate, targeted exercise involving the product, countries, relevant date and appropriate technical specialists.

Exclusive licenses, pledges, transfer restrictions, consent rights, settlement terms and third-party dependencies can limit how an asset is used or sold. We examine the relevant documents and connect those restrictions to the proposed transaction and the buyer’s intended operations.

Findings can lead to conditions before closing, specific assignments, consent requirements, warranties, indemnities or changes to the commercial terms. We distinguish what can be resolved promptly from matters requiring a different risk allocation or further specialist analysis.

Some can be addressed through confirmatory assignments, register corrections or additional consents. Others depend on a third party’s agreement or raise historical exposure that a new document cannot erase. We prioritize the required actions and identify the evidence needed to treat each item as resolved.

Buyers, investors and lenders may need it to assess a transaction. Sellers can use a readiness review to organize records and address gaps before opening a data room. A licensor, licensee or collaboration partner may need a narrower review of the rights and permissions relevant to its agreement.

The portfolio size, jurisdictions, data-room quality and response speed determine the timetable. We agree priorities around the transaction deadlines and can stage the work. Missing ownership documents, technical searches or foreign-law questions may require further work before a conclusion is possible.

Examples include rights left with founders or contractors, outdated owner details, undocumented permissions, lapsed registrations and licenses that end on a change of control. We also check whether the registered scope and territories correspond to the business that is actually being acquired or financed.

The findings can inform new filings, ownership transfers, licenses, a holding structure or a dispute response. We turn the agreed priorities into an action list with responsibility and timing. Each implementation workstream can then be scoped against the transaction’s requirements.

Yes, with a defined scope. We review development and license terms, ownership provisions and identified third-party components. A technical code scan or software bill of materials may need a specialist provider; a legal review alone cannot establish which components are present in a codebase.

The agreed output can include an issues report, ownership and license findings, follow-up questions and a prioritized remediation list. We can support transaction drafting and closing deliverables. The proposal distinguishes the legal review from technical testing, valuation and any separate freedom-to-operate opinion.