Buchanan Legal Services

Protecting what makes you unique.

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Your business’ success is defined by its ability to be unique. Whether it’s a secret sauce, a few lines of code, the mechanics of a machine, or the way you get things done, your commercial viability is the result of the value that is delivered by your unique.

Buchanan (byoo-kan-uhn)
is a boutique intellectual property and commercial law practice. We are dedicated to helping clients protect, grow and enforce their intellectual property assets through expert and dependable advice.

Immersive legal services.

When it comes to protecting your unique, you are only as strong as your weakest link. Our clients enjoy unparalleled attention to detail from our IP, Corporate & Commercial Legal services.

As a team of specialists, we are incredibly focused on helping our clients achieve their commercial goals. We believe the best way to do this is through relationships built on invested interest and mutually-determined value. We immerse ourselves in your business and brand to achieve the best possible outcome for your circumstances.

Advised the founders of Racenet, Australia’s leading online horse racing platform on the sale to a wholly owned subsidiary of News Corp Ltd (ASX:NWS)

Completed 30 November, 2018

“The Buchanan team has been a great fit for our business. Buchanan assuredly guided the business and its founding shareholders in the execution of our most important transaction, the sale of Racenet to one of the world’s largest international media organisations.”

— Damon Robbins, CEO

another case study

M&A
Corporate
Intellectual Property

Our Expertise —

Intellectual Property

IP Review, Strategy and Reporting

Thorough strategic analysis of your Intellectual Property environment will solidify your competitive advantage and increase your long-term sustainability. Secure ownership to core IP assets and mitigate IP infringement and counterfeit risks.

IP Training (including training for boards and executive teams)

Good governance demands an understanding of the nuances of Intellectual Property law. This in-turn leads to better strategic management and leadership from the board, executive team and the GC.

Trade Mark Portfolio Management

We’re experienced in managing large trade mark portfolios and helping clients achieve the cost savings and asset protection benefits that come from having a single trusted advisor maintaining a watch over your brand assets.

Patents, Trade Secrets and Confidential Information

An expert strategy that secures rights to your novel ideas and know-how can underpin sustainable revenue and create strong barriers to entry. Monopoly rights conferred by the international patent system may be ideal for a particular invention (e.g. if there is a real threat to reverse-engineering). In other instances, a business may be better served by a thorough system for the management and enforcement of its confidential know-how and trade secrets.

Enforcement of IP rights

The value of a strong stable of IP rights doesn’t reside only in their commercialisation potential but also, the ability to enforce these rights against competitors and unauthorised users. Enforcing your IP enables businesses to preserve your unique.

IP Commercialisation and Licensing

Secure sustainable revenues and a return on your investment into your intangible assets through a broad range of commercialisation activities ranging from licensing, merchandising, sponsorship and spin-off entities.

Trade Marks and Brand Protection

Successful brands are underpinned by robust trade mark strategies. Registration is the only way, at law, to protect your important brands. Whether it’s your distinctive name, logo, tag-line, packaging, shape, sound, colour or even a scent - protect your goodwill against competitors and counterfeiters through our national and international registration services.

Copyright (including advisory in the digital context)

Copyright represents the dominant intangible asset for digital businesses. Securing ownership from all relevant authors (e.g. employees, contractors, alliance partners etc) is essential for driving enterprise value and arming the business against copycats.

Designs

Often overlooked, registered designs represent an important class of IP assets for businesses involved in the design of distinctive products. Our scope of services relating to designs include design registration services, licensing agreements, sale agreements, enforcement and advising on technical design/copyright overlap issues.

Domain Name Ownership and Dispute Resolution

Domain names are a logical extension to your brand strategy. Just as it is important to protect your key domains, an eye should always be kept on the market to ensure competitors are not seeking a free-ride off your investment in your goodwill via the use domain names that closely resemble your brands.

Our Expertise —

M&A and Corporate

Business Structuring (including company registrations for start-ups)

Sound legal structuring is key to the protection and effective monetisation of your IP assets. Structuring your venture for success requires a bespoke approach having regard to your industry, categories of intellectual property rights, geographical markets, competitors and future plans.

Legal due diligence investigations and reporting

A thorough and tailored legal due diligence provides investors and purchasers with peace of mind before executing their transaction. We regularly work with other law firms requiring expert assistance on IP related enquiries and due diligence reporting.

Joint Venture and Strategic Alliance Agreements

Whether it’s a JV, alliance or an IP spin-off, Buchanan can advise on a broad range of vehicles to give effect to your IP commercialisation goals.

Fundraising

We’re well-versed in mitigating the risks that fundraising campaigns and projects can have, particularly if crowd or stakeholder participation is required. Our services provide a protective legal framework that will allow your fundraisers the opportunity to perform at their highest potential.

Private Acquisitions and Sales of Companies and Businesses

Buying and selling a businesses can be both an exciting and scary process. With an experienced legal team in your corner we can help cut through the complexity and deliver a positive transactional outcome.

Corporate Governance, Board Charters, and Directors Duties

Directors are responsible for “setting the tone” when it comes to matters of compliance and risk. Allow Buchanan to guide your board and executive teams in the effective management of your Intellectual Property.

Founders’ Agreements (e.g. Shareholders’ and Partnership Agreements)

A well structured Founders’ Agreement, tailored to your particular business operational and exit goals represents a foundation stone for the proper governance and future growth for your business.

Our Expertise —

General Commercial

IT Contracts

We have a wealth of experience across a broad range of technology transactions. We’re keen observers of emerging commercial models and the new approaches to commercial relationships and risk allocation. This enables us to “connect the dots” and create new contract models to deliver on the promises of digital transformation.

Manufacturing and Supply Contracts

Contracts with your key supply chain partners represents a critical part of the IP protection and commercialisation equation. In combination with formal IP rights, carefully developed contracts focussed on provisions addressing confidentiality, non-compete and exclusivity will help protect your unique for sustainable success.

Consultancy Contracts

Whether you’re engaging a consultant into your project, or are a consultant yourself, consulting appointments give rise to a myriad of IP and related risk issues. Well drafted contracts will ensure each party’s IP rights are properly protected having regard to their own background IP, newly created IP and other third party IP.

Sponsorship Contracts

Sponsorship agreements can represent an important part of your branding strategy. Buchanan has deep experience in drafting and advising in relation to complex sponsorship arrangements with a focus on ensuring maintaining and promoting brand integrity.

Australian Competition and Consumer Law (training, policies, & advice)

We are experienced in advising on a broad range of consumer protection and competition law issues under the Australian Consumer Law (ACL). The ACL impacts upon the majority of commercial scenarios ranging from exclusivity arrangements, third line forcing, agency and JV agreements.

Advertising / Marketing Clearance Advice)

We regularly provide timely and commercially focussed advertising clearance advice with a focus on ensuring your marketing and advertising strategies comply with the consumer protection provisions of the ACL. We can review and give you the “all clear” on specific marketing collateral, develop internal clearance systems and provide ongoing training to your team.

Employment Contracts

Our advice and drafting services include a strong focus on creating employment contracts that protect your IP, your trade, and your employers.

Executive Terms of Engagement

The engagement and management of an effective executive leadership team can greatly benefit from having an experienced team of legal professionals who understand the nuances surrounding employment, IR, and compliance.

Client / Customer Terms & Conditions

Allow Buchanan to assist in the creation of your new standard terms of service developed with a keen eye on your particular commercial objectives and business risks. We pride ourselves on developing plain English and easy to use contracting forms that meet required standards under laws relating to Personal Property Securities, Australian Consumer Law (including prohibitions against unfair contract terms) and privacy.

Website Terms & Conditions

Terms and conditions are only as strong as their ability to protect and enforce specific commercial objectives, something that a template is unlikely to achieve.

Confidentiality Agreements (NDAs)

Preserving the confidentiality of key trade secrets and know-how is a fundamental component to any venture’s IP strategy. We possess unrivaled experience in the effective management of our clients’ valuable knowledge assets particularly in the context of private equity and M&A transactions.

Competition Ts and Cs

Competitions are a great way of promoting your brand, engaging with your customers, and attracting a wider audience. Allow us to help you navigate the multi-layered regulatory regime and draft compliant terms to enhance the success of your competition.

Privacy

We’re adept at working with clients in the digital frontier on matters relating to technology, AI, new media, direct marketing and data analytics. Clients benefit from our holistic and commercial approach to managing data as an asset with our related expertise in copyright law and the protection of valuable know-how.

Industry Specific Regulatory Advice (e.g. education, startups, wagering)

Our core value of empirical enquiry means that we are relentless in our immersion in your specific industry and the laws and regulations that pertain to it, resulting in objective and well-grounded legal advice.

Independent Contractor Agreements

We can assist with the enforcement of independent contractor agreements and the establishment of protective frameworks to ensure that value is consistently delivered and the threat of IP infringement is mitigated.

Non-Compete Agreements

We can protect the long-term viability of your IP by ensuring you are well-protected from the risk of employee, executive, and contractor counterfeiting through implementing enforceable non-compete agreements.

Blog

Useful free advice, resources, and opinions.

The Full Federal Court of Australia provides a welcome reality check to the meaning of an “authorised user” of a trade mark

12 Aug '19

Blog

Last year UNIQUE reported on a Federal Court decision having significant ramifications for trade mark owners who structure their IP arrangements by housing their IP assets in a separate entity from their trading entity. Benefits of these structuring arrangements include asset protection (e.g. insulating valuable IP assets from potential disgruntled creditors) and tax (e.g. sharing