Life skills and career tips for Canada's lawyers in training
Issue link: https://digital.canadianlawyermag.com/i/552038
C A N A D I A N L a w y e r 4 S T U D E N T S F A L L 2 0 1 5 33 Practising Intellectual property law hildview_4st_Spring_14.indd 1 14-01-29 11:03 AM PROS: + • IP is a dynamic and constantly evolving fi eld, which provides opportunities to push the boundaries of the law and requires creative lawyering to use legislation that is o en perceived as outdated when dealing with new challenges arising out of technological, economical, and social changes. • When we refer to IP, we typically hear about patents, trademarks, copyright, and industrial design, but there is so much more. Protecting cannabis seeds under the Plant Breeders' Act; registering a sound or scent as a trademark; cyber squatters and new gtlds; request for assistance to the Canadian Border Services Agency for copyright and trademark owners; the use of trademarks in commercial advertising in Quebec and the Charter of the French Language. IP is an ever expanding area where you constantly learn new things and which looks into the protection of all business assets that involves creativity and innovation. • ere are so many facets to IP — the nature of the practice requires lawyers to look into the development, the protection, the enforcement, and the defence of intellectual property rights. Solicitors' skills are welcome and put to good use outside the limelight of the court system. • It is a fi eld where you get to interact with domestic and overseas clients from all walks of life, such as individuals, small and medium enterprises, and Fortune 500 companies. Also, while IP is subject to national protection, it is also global and you have to stay abreast of legal trends in other jurisdictions and interact with foreign lawyers in your fi eld of expertise. CONS: – • As there are relatively few cases that go to trial in IP matters in Canada compared with other areas of law or even compared with other jurisdictions, and as it takes the Canadian government so long to adopt new legislation, it may be challenging to advise clients about the rights, recourses, and remedies they may have when dealing with innovative matters. • e limited amount of IP litigation makes it diffi cult for young lawyers to have opportunities to get on their feet in court or to conduct their own cases. • IP is o en perceived as being expensive, which results in business owners either not taking appropriate steps to protect it or attempting to do it themselves. is o en results in spending more money down the road to do what should have been done in the fi rst place, so lawyers constantly need to be on the lookout to educate their clients. • Trademarks are meant to act as a source identifi cation tool, distinguishing a product from a competitor's product. Trademarks are increasingly seen as commodities, particularly in cyberspace. is trend makes it very diffi cult for the consumer to identify one product from another, resulting in the loss of fi nancial resources to develop and market products. It can be hard to convince clients of why they need to invest in the protection of their trademarks as part of their IP strategy, and as lawyers, we need to act as business advocates not only for the protection of our clients' assets but also for the protection of the public. ■ CHANTAL BERTOSA, Shapiro Cohen LLP, Ottawa