How to get IP Transfers right?

For university spin outs and business based on highly technical research, the IP Transfer of your idea to your company is a vital early step for your business. 

How not to stumble?

3 common problems with IP transfer and registration

1. Taxes!

Transferring IP comes with the downside of triggering capital gains tax. The tax regime, and exemptions, is complex and we would recommend specific advice on this for your business. 

2. Not knowing the IP owner

Often, when individuals/businesses want to transfer intellectual property, purely based on the idea, they might not know who it belongs to. 

Who came up with the idea? Who has worked on it since? Is any part of it licensed from another IP owner?

Does your university or incubator programme own any of your IP? You’ll need to check any documents you have signed.

Before transferring your IP you’ll need to agree who owns it, and a lawyer to draft the paperwork. 

Agree while you’re friends, because you never know what the relationship will be like in a few years’ time. 

And either way, any investors will need to know who owns what - otherwise they won’t invest.

3. Paperwork hassle when dealing with investment rounds or M&A transactions

If all goes well, you’ll have investors and institutions liking your idea and wanting to give you money or support. 

But they will need to see the paperwork.

Dealing with paperwork is a big hassle when it comes to investments or IP transfers in M&A.

If an investor sees you haven’t got the right paperwork, they might not invest. Or they might take advantage of you if they think you’re naive.

If only there were professionals specifically able to help with this problem…

Call me a Registered Technology Transfer Professional

So it’s not an elegant name, but an RTTP can be a life saver (or at least a business saver). 

Currently, there are only 638 fully qualified RTTPs in the world who can help with technology IP transfers. 

Yes, the number is quite small—-especially considering how intellectual property transfer is such a huge part of so many business transactions. 

But, wait, what are RTTPs and how can they help with your IP transfer? 

How can RTTPs help with the transfer?

RTTPs mainly deal in the IP transfer of technologies — which universities and hospitals must do to further research. 

Let’s put it this way: a regular lawyer would mainly have an understanding of the law, not of the technology, which may put you two steps behind. After all, no matter how great an IP lawyer you may hire, what good are they going to do if they don’t understand the subject matter?

That’s where RTTPs come in —- we’re lawyers, but we also have a well-versed understanding of technologies. 

But that’s just one part of it.

Aside from just legal and technical know-how, we also have learnt to identify business opportunities and strategic approaches. This means we not only help you conclude an IP transfer, but we can also give you well-rounded insights backed by law, strategy, management, and technical knowledge. 

Where I come in

I’m Cora and I support activities in the UK and EU, specialising in helping university graduates transfer IP to companies. If you need me to help you out with any IP transfers, feel free to reach out to me here.