intellectual property

Incorporeal ownership is the ownership of a right. It is ownership which is intangible in nature. In other words, it is not ownership of a thing, but ownership in a right related to something. For example, if you own a piece of land, that is corporeal ownership.

A patent can be infringed either directly or indirectly. Direct infringement occurs when someone makes, uses, or sells a patented invention without the authority to do so. Alternatively, indirect infringement occurs when a person actively causes someone else to infringe on a patent.

• intellectual property; patent; copyright; trademark; direct infringement; secondary liability

Any person who actively induces infringement of a patent is liable as an infringer (see 35 U.S.C. § 271(b). Inducement of infringement refers to a situation where a person encourages or facilitates another person to directly infringe on a patent.

Overview:

An infringement is a violation, a breach, or an unauthorized act. Infringement occurs in various situations. A harm to one’s right is an infringement. A violation of a statute is also an infringement. In a commercial contract, an infringement happens when one of the contracting parties breaches the terms stated in the contract.

Generally, an infringement refers to the act of unlawful copying of material under intellectual property law.

A person infringes another’s trademark through unauthorized use of that trademark or service mark (or by using a substantially similar mark) on competing or related goods and services. The success of a lawsuit to stop the infringement turns on whether the defendant's use causes a likelihood of confusion in the average consumer. If a court determines that confusion is likely, the owner of the original mark can prevent the second user's use of the infringing mark and sometimes collect damages.

The instance-and-expense test is a legal standard commonly employed by courts to determine whether a product was a work made for hire. Work done by employees within the scope of their employment will generally be deemed made for hire. However, ownership rights between contractors and hiring parties may be less clear-cut.

Intangible property is a property without a physical existence. Examples of intangible property include patents, patent applications, trade names, trademarks, service marks, copyrights, trade secrets.

• property