Welcome to the first edition of your monthly newsletter from The Law Department. We aim to provide you with an overview of what is happening in the law each month, combined with information about activities taking place at The Law Department that you might be interested in. In this month’s newsletter, we look at the issue of copyright infringement and theft, following research conducted by the IP Crime Group into the growth of copyright theft prosecutions, up from 478 in 2008 to 563 in 2009. Protecting your intellectual property is essential for all businesses as it can be your most valuable asset, but copyright infringement is a legal minefield, which can have negative repercussions if you fall foul of the law. The Law Department can help you manage all areas of intellectual property, whether you are requiring advice on developing, protecting, registering, licensing, purchasing or selling intellectual property, or are involved in an ownership dispute or infringement claim. Take a look at our website for more information. If you haven’t already, please do take a look at our brand new website, www.lawdepartment.co.uk, which is full of information on all of the services that we provide and you can see the profiles of the expanded team of solicitors who are working from our new offices. Please do let us know what you think and we look forward to working with you closely in the coming months. We are also regularly running promotions on a number of the services we offer. Therefore, if you know someone who wants to buy a property and needs some conveyancing, or a landlord/tenant that requires legal assistance, or alternatively if you are thinking about writing or updating your will, then please do speak to us to find out about the special offers we have running at the moment. Kind regards Justin Selig
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One way companies try to prove the superiority of their product is by comparing it to that of a competitor. But be warned, if you have similar plans, copyright infringement could become an issue. Comparative advertising is a legal minefield as one company found out in a case reported on our website. The company conducted a series of fire tests to demonstrate the allegedly superior fire resistance of their products with another brand. The other brand objected to the tests saying they misrepresented their products and their trademarks had been infringed. The Court ruled the comparisons were not real life and were therefore unfair; meaning the use of the trademarks was a copyright infringement. If you are contemplating an advertising or marketing campaign that involves using the trademarks of another business, contact us for advice before doing so.
If you are a restaurant owner you had better make sure that all takings and tips have been declared, as HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has announced a probe into the under-recording of takings and cash tips at restaurants of all sizes. Restaurants, take-aways and other food establishments should be prepared for unannounced visits if HMRC believes that tax discrepancies are occurring. In serious cases, HMRC have been known to bring criminal charges which in turn can lead to potential asset confiscation. Read this story in full on our website and if you are concerned about your tax affairs, contact us for advice.
Company directors can be party to confidential information and can make any requests for information so long as it is judged to be reasonable. However, as one recent case shows, revealing this information to a new employer is not always legal. The principle that a director owes a duty of good faith to his company is well established and in this instance the High Court granted a former employer a ‘perpetual injunction’, banning the ex-director from disclosing specified information regarding a product after the two parties became involved in a dispute over shares. If you are engaged in a dispute with fellow directors or fear that your company may be damaged by the activity of an employee, seek legal advice without hesitation. 
Anyone who is involved in the building trade will know that works often involve a number of contracts, many of which contain conflicting terms. Deciding which has primacy over the other is the way that the courts will ascertain who is ultimately responsible for the works. In a recent case it was judged that a subcontractor – despite being obliged under one contract to ‘check the design and accept responsibility’ of the works - was deemed not liable when the works were found to need considerable rectification, as the subcontractor’s tender document contained a clause which rendered it ‘not responsible for the design of any of the …works’. It was judged that this document prevailed over the other and liability was therefore not placed with the subcontractor. Read this interesting story in full on our website and remember that carefully worded documentation is essential when setting out contractual rights and responsibilities. Professional advice should always be sought in such instances.
