Intellectual Property Law
- Ava Rajasooria
- Mar 5
- 2 min read
by Ava Rajasooria
The idea of intellectual property can be hard to grasp.
Wikipedia describes intellectual property (IP) as a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. This means that intellectual property is basically something new and special that you have created with your mind. The key word here is ‘create’. However, an idea can’t be legally yours, but making something out of that idea can be.
Intellectual property covers:
The name of your product or brand
Your invention
The design or look of your product or brand
Things you write, make or produce
Ways to own IP include: creating it yourself (and meeting the requirements of copyright, patent, or a design), purchasing those rights from a previous owner, or having a trademarked product brand.
Lawyers usually either specialise in contentious or non-contentious IP. Contentious work is required when a client’s legal rights have been infringed or harmed, whereas non-contentious work tends to be reviewing and registering a client’s rights.
The main types of Intellectual Property in Malaysia:
Copyright
An exclusive right granted to those who create works of art, literature, music, and science. Copyright protects these ideas in the form of original works and prevents them from being reproduced without authorisation.
Trademarks
These protect symbols, logos, names, and slogans that identify and distinguish goods or services sold by a specific person or company in the marketplace.
Patents
Patents typically provide exclusive rights to the patent holder to produce, use, and sell the invention for a set period, often twenty years. A patent is granted for new inventions that meet the criteria of novelty, inventiveness, and industrial applicability.
Others
Industrial designs, geographical indications, and confidential information are amongst other types of IP.
☆ Note that intellectual property laws differ from country to country!
In conclusion, intellectual property law is important because it rewards innovation and creativity, stimulates economic growth by attracting foreign investment and local entrepreneurship, and ensures consumer protection.
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