Patents
Inventions under the Patents Act, 1970. Pre-filing search, drafting, ordinary and PCT filing, foreign filing, examination response, opposition, and renewal across software, AI, electrical, electronics, mechanical, and manufacturing fields.
Intellectual Property Services in India
You are protecting an invention, a brand, a design, or a body of creative work, and you need IP counsel in India who can move across all four regimes when the matter requires it. Indian IP law sits in four distinct statutes (patents, trademarks, designs, and copyrights), each with its own subject matter, registration regime, and enforcement architecture. Intepat is a Bangalore-headquartered intellectual property law firm with Registered Patent Agents, Registered Trademark Agents, and senior copyright and design counsel working across all four, supported by a vetted foreign associate network.
Speak with our IP TeamRegistered Patent Agents
Registered Trademark Agents
Senior Copyright and Design Counsel
Bangalore Headquartered
Foreign Associate Network
The four IP practice areas at a glance
| Right | What it protects | Governing statute | Registering authority |
|---|---|---|---|
| Patent | New inventions: products and processes | Patents Act, 1970 | Indian Patent Office |
| Trademark | Brand identifiers: words, logos, trade dress | Trade Marks Act, 1999 | Trade Marks Registry |
| Design | Visual appearance of articles of manufacture | Designs Act, 2000 | Indian Patent Office (Designs Wing) |
| Copyright | Original literary, artistic, musical, dramatic works including software | Copyright Act, 1957 | Copyright Office |
Most commercial assets attract more than one form. A consumer technology product typically calls for patent protection for the underlying invention, trademark protection for the brand, design registration for product appearance, and copyright protection for software and content.
Trademarks
Brands under the Trade Marks Act, 1999. Search and clearance, Indian and international registration, opposition, renewal, and enforcement across words, logos, packaging trade dress, and non-conventional marks.
Designs
Visual appearance of articles of manufacture under the Designs Act, 2000 read with Locarno classification. Indian registration, foreign filing, and cancellation work.
Copyrights
Original literary, dramatic, musical, artistic, cinematographic, and sound-recording works under the Copyright Act, 1957, including software as a literary work. Registration, assignment and licensing recordal, and platform enforcement.
How Intepat handles cross-IP work
Commercial IP work rarely fits neatly inside a single regime. The boundaries between the four rights are statutory rather than commercial, and the choice of regime carries consequences for term, registrability, evidentiary burden, and licensing structure.
Copyright and design overlap
Section 15 of the Copyright Act, 1957 mediates the boundary between copyright and design protection for artistic works applied industrially. The election between filing as a design or relying on copyright subsistence is consequential and time-bound.
Trademark and copyright overlap
A logo can sit simultaneously inside the Trade Marks Act, 1999 as a source identifier and the Copyright Act, 1957 as an artistic work, with different evidentiary value at enforcement.
Design and patent overlap
Industrial designs and utility patents sometimes overlap where the shape of an article also contributes to function; the registrability assessment under each regime is distinct.
Bundled rights in transactions
Licensing arrangements often bundle rights drawn from multiple regimes, with separate recordal requirements under each register.
Intepat assigns each matter to the regime where it delivers the strongest right for the commercial purpose intended, then layers complementary protection where evidence, deterrence, valuation, or licensing value warrants it. Engagements touching multiple regimes run through a single senior point of contact. Licensing and transactional work is structured through the firm’s IP Licensing and Agreements practice.
Who this is for
Founders and early-stage technology companies
Setting up patent, trademark, and copyright positions before product launch or fundraise.
R&D-driven enterprises
Managing multi-jurisdictional patent and design portfolios across product lines.
Consumer brands and content companies
Coordinating trademark, design, and copyright protection across Indian and international markets.
In-house IP and legal teams
Seeking an Indian counterpart with engineering depth and statutory discipline.
Foreign IP firms
Requiring an Indian filing, prosecution, and recordal partner on conflict-checked, instruction-based engagement.
Investors and acquirers
Commissioning IP audit and due diligence on Indian targets.
Cross-IP services
Beyond the four practice areas, three specialised engagements operate across the regimes:
Global IP Filing
Coordinated international filing through the PCT route for patents, the Madrid Protocol for trademarks, the Hague System for designs where applicant eligibility permits, and Paris Convention direct filing where treaty routes are unavailable.
IP Audit and Strategy
Cross-regime portfolio review covering ownership verification, renewal status, encumbrance disclosure, coverage-gap analysis, and forward strategy. Commissioned for fundraising preparation and board-mandated reviews.
IP Due Diligence
Pre-investment, pre-acquisition, and pre-licensing IP review covering validity, freedom to operate, ownership chain, encumbrance, and recordal status. Transaction-grade reporting for M&A and investor counsel.
Sectors covered
Drafting and prosecution are staffed against the subject matter of the invention or asset.
Software and AI
Machine learning systems, model architectures, training pipelines, applied AI, distributed systems, and computer-readable storage media claims under the Section 3(k) framework and the CRI Guidelines.
Electronics and communications
Circuits, signal processing, embedded systems, semiconductor devices, wireless communications, and integrated circuit topographies.
Mechanical and manufacturing
Industrial machinery, automotive components, consumer hardware, and process patents.
Life sciences and chemistry
Chemical processes, formulations, and adjacent fields through dedicated subject-matter counsel.
Consumer products and design-led businesses
Industrial designs, packaging, and trade dress for FMCG, fashion, and consumer hardware.
Content, media, and software publishing
Copyright registration, licensing, and platform enforcement.
Brands across categories
Word marks, device marks, slogans, packaging trade dress, and non-conventional marks.
IP for founders and growth-stage companies
Early-stage IP work has its own logic. Founders operate with limited budget, a moving product, and tight fundraise timing. Pre-seed and seed strategy is rarely “file everything”; it is usually “protect what is critical now, defer the rest, document what will be filed later”. Intepat works with founders and growth-stage companies on staged IP rollouts that match the funding cycle.
IP for StartupsStage-aware IP guidance for founders from pre-seed through Series A and growth.
Why choose Intepat for intellectual property
Statutory credential leadership where it applies
Patent practice is led by Registered Patent Agents under the Patents Act, 1970; trademark practice by Registered Trademark Agents under the Trade Marks Act, 1999. Copyright and design practice runs through senior counsel with established Registrar and Patent Office experience.
Subject-matter depth alongside legal practice
Drafting and prosecution are staffed against the technology of the invention or the commercial nature of the asset.
Cross-regime coordination by design
Matters touching multiple regimes are coordinated under a single senior point of contact rather than running as four parallel engagements.
International coordination through foreign associates
Foreign filings run through a vetted associate network selected on jurisdictional fit, with consolidated tracking from Bangalore.
Confidentiality discipline
Confidentiality protocols apply from first contact. Source code, R&D disclosures, and transaction-sensitive material sit on access-controlled systems, with conflict checks preceding every new engagement.
IP Services FAQs
Which IP services does Intepat cover?
The full lifecycle across patents, trademarks, designs, and copyrights. Patent work runs from search through drafting, ordinary and PCT filing, foreign filing, examination response, opposition, and renewal. Trademark work runs from search and clearance through Indian and international registration, opposition, renewal, and enforcement. Design work covers registration, foreign filing, and cancellation. Copyright work covers registration, software filing, assignment and licensing recordal, and platform enforcement. Cross-regime work includes audit, due diligence, global filing, and licensing.
Who can act as IP counsel in India?
Indian IP law treats the regimes differently on credentialing. Patent matters handled before the Indian Patent Office are conducted by Registered Patent Agents under the Patents Act, 1970. Trademark filings before the Trade Marks Registry are handled through authorised representatives, including Registered Trademark Agents under the Trade Marks Act, 1999. The Copyright Act, 1957 and the Designs Act, 2000 do not establish equivalent statutory agent classes; work before the Registrar of Copyrights and the Patent Office (Designs) is handled by counsel with relevant registry experience.
How does Intepat work with foreign IP firms and in-house teams?
Foreign IP firms, in-house counsel, and corporate IP teams form a substantial part of the client base. Engagements are shaped to the partner's workflow: instruction-based filing and prosecution for foreign firms, coordinated docket and reporting for in-house teams managing large portfolios, and senior-level engagement for founders without internal IP staff. Conflict checks run before any new engagement opens.
Can Intepat coordinate IP filings outside India?
Yes. Patent filings run through the PCT route or Paris Convention direct filing. Trademarks run through the Madrid Protocol and direct national filing in non-Madrid jurisdictions. Designs are coordinated through the Hague System where applicant eligibility permits, and through direct national filing where Hague is unavailable. Copyright recordal runs country by country where evidentiary or enforcement value warrants it. Priority dates, deadline tracking, and foreign associate prosecution oversight run from Bangalore.
Does Intepat handle IP litigation?
Filing, prosecution, opposition, recordal, audit, due diligence, and pre-litigation strategy across the four regimes are within scope. Courtroom litigation, including infringement suits before the High Courts, is not handled at the firm. Where courtroom action is required, Intepat coordinates with litigation counsel of the client's choice. Pre-litigation work, opposition under Section 25 of the Patents Act, 1970, and rectification work under the Trade Marks Act, 1999 are handled directly.
How are fees and engagement terms structured?
Engagements run on a structured fee basis tied to scope and stage rather than open-ended billing. Each engagement begins with a written scope and fee letter setting out deliverables, statutory deadlines, foreign associate cost pass-through, and the reporting schedule. Renewal and recordal work runs on a separate maintenance arrangement so portfolio costs remain predictable across years.
Outline Your IP Requirements
Send your details and the IP team will respond within one business day. All consultations are confidential.