The combination of industry focus, profound legal expertise and a high affinity for technology allows MAYRFELD to provide legal advice in connection with the development and commercialization of technologies that have not yet been fully legally classified or covered by legislation.
Counseling clients in the technology sector requires due consideration of the corresponding industry specifics and the regulatory framework. In the development process for example, we deliver focussed legal counseling tailored to the respective development steps and stages in product development – regardless of whether based on your own research and development or whether based on acquired third-party technology.
MAYRFELD counsels clients on all legal aspects from idea to product, from development to manufacturing and distribution, in connection with the internal protection and the group-wide pooling of IP rights, the structuring of employee invention schemes, or the acquisition or in-licensing of third party rights.
MAYRFELD advises on regulatory product classifications, when cooperating with research & development partners, and on the involvement of third parties such as contract manufacturers, OEM- or distribution partners.
In the technology arena, MAYRFELD advises clients with a focus in the following industries:
Difference and innovation bring about change. However, only avant-garde enables you to cut the edge.
Our experience has shown that – in particular in the technology area – legal advice cannot be provided without due consideration of the industry specifics or the regulatory environment.
Developing novel products is subject to an ongoing technological and legal change. Given the increasing complexities in research and development, co-operations among industry and scientific partners significantly gain importance. At the same time, the market has developed exceptionally differenciated co-operation structures to account for the necessities that come along with the external
financing, public funding, ownership and exploitation of IP-rights, or the various regulatory requirements in connection with conducting innovative R&D projects.
In this context, a profound knowledge of the various parameters and available legal structurings is decisive to provide the right legal framework for technical ingenuity to develop its full impact.
We think that the protection of IP in a corporate context requires an holistic approach and cannot merely be implemented on a punctual basis.
Efficient know-how protection can only be achieved in a closed system. Any negligence in protecting your IP and/or Know-How can cause a significant dilution of its value or obliterate it in its entirety.
IP and Know-How originates from a personal creation or idea. Prior to their corporate exploitation both, IP and Know-How, need to be made available to the company. Now, protection is perfected, e.g., by the filing of a patent application or through institutional know-how protection. The task is then to make the IP available to the corresponding exploitation channels without allowing its unauthorized disclosure. We advise on all legal aspects in connection with the lifecycle of your IP and Know-How – from conception to commercialization.
In case of patent applications, we co-operate with hand-selected patent attorneys. In this context, we advise on the optimization of Know-How and IP protection within the company and towards third parties (e.g., through the filing of a patent application or through institutionalized Know-How protection). We then assist our clients with putting their Know-How in the relevant exploitation channels and at the the implementation of contractual measures to avoid its unauthorized disclosure (e.g., by implementation of NDAs).
The acquisition of innovative technology provides either an alternative or complementary strategy to conducting own research for product development.
Technology can be acquired in multiple ways. Technology acquisitions can create beneficial dynamics in the development process as compared to conducting own development efforts from scratch. Similarly, the sale of certain unwanted or unnecessary technology can create advantages in connection with the consolidation of your corporate or development strategies.
We advise on the acquisition or sale of patented technology or Know-How, the sale of licenses, or on the acquisition or sale of the corporate vehicles holding certain technologies.
Not all technology acquisitions are created equal.
We have long-standing expertise in counseling national and international companies in connection with the implementation of the available vehicles from license agreements, the acquisition of patent portfolios to M&A-transactions in the technology area. We provide comprehensive advice ranging from due-diligence exercises, IP-pooling or the handling of post-closing matters – depending on the desired level of ownership or the necessity of acquiring related personnel expertise in addition to the desired technology access.
The development and manufacturing of innovative products and technologies offers many opportunities for exploring necessities or possibillities for the in- or outlicensing of technology.
MAYRFELD advises from the necessary in-licensing of complementary technologies, the out-licensing of secondary products, a group-wide technology pooling, complex licensing structures in the creation of industry-standards, to open source scenarios.
We advise on all matters related to the in- or out-licensing of technology under due consideration of the relevant industry-specifics. Beyond standard licensing terms and conditions, we turn our attention to the intersections with your business such as impacts by regulatory requirements, the corporate safeguarding of employee inventions, or the intra-group pooling of IP rights and licenses.
Regulations put limitations to creativity. Some are good. Some are less good. With some you can work. However, you have to know them all.
The technology market experiences a continuously increasing level of regulation. However, even in non-regluated markets specific legal requirements apply to the market players.
On the one hand, regulatory requirements increase with progressing technological complexity such as, e.g., in the life sciences industry. On the other hand, other – so far non-regulated – areas experience additional or new regulatory requirements with the acquisition of novel product features as we can see, e.g., with the growing digitization in the automobile industry.
Although the regulatory framework in general is tied to the manufacturing and commercialization of a product, the relevance of regulatory requirements shifts to a considerably earlier stage in the product development process: often the regulatory requirements that need to be met upon commercialization already need to be considered in the research and development phase. Business perspectives can also make it inevitable to consider the regulatory framework already during product design for securing a later return of investment.
The job of engineering is to make it work once, while the task of quality assurance is to make it work all the time.
A good quality assurance system and its proper contractual implementation is crucial for your product’s success on the market.
Establishing standards for quality assurance – for internal purposes as well as external co-operation – does not only serve customer satisfaction, approval proceedings or conformity assessments, but also assists in the allocation and separation of responsibilities and in the clearance of warranty issues.
Setting-up technical quality assurance procedures is different from implementing quality assurance systems on an enforceable contractual level. Albeit in certain industries the bulk of quality assurance requirements is set forth by legislation, in a co-operation the allocation of the corresponding responsibilities is often subject to negotiation.
This is where our industry focus chimes in and provides us with the necessary background to combine the technical necessities with legal requirements.
Manufacturing and distribution are key to your ROI.
Safeguarding your distribution systems as well as sustained protection of corporate revenue form the economic pillars of your business.
Product launch in the realization phase is an ubiquitous process. Different countries, different customs. The interplay of business expectations, the regulatory framework, and different jurisdictions requires creativity and the identification of rooms to manoevre – local as well as cross-border. In the technology sector, the possibilities to exploit your developments are numerous. A product’s success, however, is not only determined by its sales but also by the appropriate legal protection of component sourcing.
If you find this appealing, please see our brochure for more information on MAYRFELD.
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