<p>We routinely handle some of the ground breaking IP matters in the Middle East,  acting for major global brands and international and regional right  owners.<br /><br /><strong>BRAND PROTECTION<br /><br /></strong>Entrusted with some of  the most recognizable brands in the world, Al Tamimi &amp; Company&nbsp; trade mark  lawyers are amongst the most awarded in the region. Experts in the management of  entire portfolios of trade marks on a regional basis, our services include:-</p>
<ul>
<li>Trademark searches and clearances covering the Middle East region and  providing detailed analysis and advice on the availability and registrability of  a trademark on a regional basis.</li>
<li>Trademark registration and prosecution of trademarks before the official  registries in the UAE and the Middle East region. This includes the registration  and prosecution of non-traditional trademarks, such as single color and 3D shape  trademarks.</li>
<li>Enforcing IP rights by way of court, police, brooders (customs) and  administrative actions. This includes supervising raids commenced by the  relevant law enforcement agency, enforcement of non-traditional trademark rights  and enforcement of trademark rights against look-alikes.</li>
<li>Coordinating and managing cross-jurisdictional IP litigation and disputes  involving Office actions (cancellations, oppositions) and Court actions.</li>
<li>Providing strategies for multi-jurisdictional conflicts/disputes.  Structuring and negotiating settlement agreements on regional and global basis  on behalf of our clients.</li>
<li>Advising clients prior to any product launches and taking measures to secure  proper protection for the intellectual property rights, and establishing a  system with clients&rsquo; marketing departments to ensure adequate protection is  sought at the outset.</li>
<li>Providing advice on effective alternative dispute resolution.</li>
<li>Structuring strategies for developing and strengthening clients&rsquo; existing  brands, and advising clients on the development, ownership, clearance and  protection of new brands and products.</li>
<li>Advising clients on their promotional and advertising activities from a  trademark and copyright perspective.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>PATENTS &amp; DESIGNS</strong></p>
<p>Al Tamimi&nbsp; continues to be a leading force in the patent &amp; design  protection space in the Middle East through its services across the entire gamut  of patent &amp; design prosecution, litigation and commercialization matters for  large scale portfolio proprietors.</p>
<p>Multijurisdictional Portfolio Management is a core strength of Al Tamimi  Patent &amp; Design lawyers. Compelling reasons why our clients have chosen to  rely on us as their first line of defence for patent &amp; design matters in the  Middle East include the following:-</p>
<p><strong>-&nbsp;International Experience</strong><br /><br />Our lawyers have  international experience and exposure having worked with some of the most  recognizable names in the international Intellectual Property business including  regional inhouse experience. This translates into an in depth knowledge of cross  border anti counterfeiting campaigns as well as patent systems and a true  understanding of multijurisdictional issues especially in a region as complex as  the Middle East.</p>
<p><strong>-&nbsp;Regional Coordination</strong><br /><br />Having a centralized point of  contact for patent matters makes sense in the Middle East as corresponding  applications entering into the national phase of a PCT application or enjoying  convention priority periods are filed. Our clients truly value the efficiency  and reduced risk that flows from using a centralized contact point in a complex  region. Relying on Al Tamimi as the regional coordinator means being able to  depend on our expertise with the local laws and practices, our relationships  with local agents and authorities, and our international level standards of  advice and service.</p>
<p><strong>LITIGATION<br /><br /></strong>Building on our firm&rsquo;s strength as a  pioneering litigation powerhouse, we continue to write history by helming the  first ever patent infringement and revocation in the UAE. In the area of  trademarks, Al Tamimi&nbsp;&nbsp; has participated in shaping numerous court principles in  judgments establishing principles of well known marks, free riding and trade  dress infringement, priority of ownership and confusing similarity  factors.<br /><br /><strong>MEDIA &amp; ENTERTAINMENT</strong><br /><br />We  continue to work with major media companies and provide the contractual  essential advice, protection of IP assets, defend the clients in defamation  claims and underline the necessary guidelines for the operating staff, such as  news reporters, representatives and correspondents  overseas.<br /><br /><strong>CONSUMER PROTECTION AND COMPETITION,</strong></p>
<p>Our consumer and regulatory affairs lawyers regularly provide clients,  including manufacturers and distributors, with legal advice concerning consumer  protection and competition issues in line with various laws such as the Consumer  Protection Law, the UAE Civil Code and the UAE Commercial Transactions Law. The  team works closely with the Litigation department in order to gain a clear  understanding of the courts&rsquo; approach in related circumstances for the benefit  of our clients.<br /><br /><strong>DATA PRIVACY</strong> <br /><br />Our Privacy and  Data Protection side, and owing to an unparalleled comparative knowledge and  local insight that our lawyers have as regards the privacy related legal regimes  in the whole Middle East, we are often called upon by many clients to coordinate  data privacy compliance assignments for the whole region. We regularly renders  advice in relation to the data privacy and information security issues in the  light of the legal thresholds protecting individual privacy as laid out in  various laws of the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Qatar, Kuwait, and Iraq. We also  specialize in data compliance matters as regards the laws applicable to  specially regulated free zones, such as, the Dubai International Financial  Centre (DIFC) and the Qatar Financial Center  (QFC).<br /><br /><strong>ADVERTISING AND REGULATORY  AFFAIRS</strong></p>
<p>This area remains quite rigidly regulated by the  relevant authorities in the region particularly in the areas of promotional  campaigns, marketing activities and competitions. We have extensive experience  in approaching the relevant authorities in the region to verify the conformity  of such activities. In addition, we are able to draw on the language skills of  our Arabic-speaking lawyers to make specific enquiries to the relevant  authorities including, for example, the Emirates Standards &amp; Metrology  Authority (ESMA) and the Consumer Protection Department of the Ministry of  Economy. We advise on the standards and regulations that govern food additive,  import and re-export requirements for foodstuff among other relevant regulatory  issues.</p>
<ul>
<li>Advising on brand position and restrictions of advertising</li>
<li>Pharmaceutical and medical regulatory affairs, we advise clients&nbsp; in  regulatory related polices and registration</li>
<li>Advising on online campaigns, consequences&nbsp; and required permits and the  jurisdictions of UAE enforcement bodies.</li>
<li>Advising and drafting terms and conditions for promotions and marketing  campaigns on a regional basis.</li>
<li>Advising on compliance of promotions with competition laws.</li>
<li>Advising on formalities that are required before the competent authorities  including Economic Department licensing formalities and medical devices  registration formalities before the UAE Ministry of Health.</li>
<li>Advising on the UAE Ministry of Health Pharmaceutical preparations  guidelines.</li>
<li>Advising on permits, policies of marketing authorization holder, company  registration at the Ministry of Health and product registration before Dubai  Municipalities, including health related products.</li>
<li>Advising on regulations of food control department at Dubai Municipality,  including the guidelines of registering the foods &amp; beverages importers and  compliance with Import and Re-Export requirements for foodstuff  regulations.</li>
<li>Advising on compliance with Foreign Corruption Practices Act &ldquo;FCPA&rdquo; &amp;  Transparency International policies.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>INTELLECTUAL ASSET MANAGEMENT</strong><br /><br /><strong>Our  Practice&nbsp;</strong> <br /><br />Intellectual Asset Management is a core competency of  our practice. We adopt a holistic approach in assisting our clients in realising  the optimal potential in mining their intellectual assets to extract the maximum  IP value from their investments in intangibles. <br /><strong>&nbsp;</strong></p>
<p><strong>Our  Expertise</strong><br /><br />Our collective experience includes regional inhouse  experience at a global FMCG giant, which means that we can draw upon our  understanding of the inner mechanisms of corporate IP departments in conducting  IP due diligence with a multijurisdictional approach in respect of mergers &amp;  acquisitions, complex licensing structures, and intellectual asset management  across all IP subject matters including copyright, patent, trademark and  designs.<br /><br />We have an established network of IP associates in the major  markets of the world with whom we could access in conducting the necessary due  diligence and investigation on the targets&rsquo; IP worthiness as companies scour the  world for investment grade IP opportunities.</p>
<p><strong>Our Services</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>We run Intellectual Asset Management programs for clients in managing their  IP portfolios for value by implementing programs designed to identify, protect  and exploit the resulting IP rights.</li>
<li>We conduct reviews and gap analysis studies of the IP portfolios of IP rich  companies to optimize their IP holdings.</li>
<li>We assist clients in evaluating patent, design, and trade mark portfolios of  target investee companies and investors in coordinating the necessary validity,  infringement and freedom to operate analyses including prior art and clearance  searches.</li>
<li>We manage the IP aspects of acquisitions and strategic investments of target  companies where IP invariably underpins the entire deal</li>
<li>We advise management teams on the restructuring of the operations, which  would involve IP audits of the various operations being restructured</li>
</ul>
<p>&nbsp;</p>