A Cease and Desist letter in Intellectual Property (IP) law is a written letter from an owner of intellectual property or other rights to an infringer of those rights. The letter typically demands that:
Cease and desist notices can be written by the owner of the rights, or by their agent (such as a solicitor or patent attorney).
A response is required from the infringer and legal action may follow.
If you become aware that your trademark, invention or other IP is being used without your permission, you may choose to send a cease and desist notice to the offender.
A cease and desist is the most inexpensive and efficient way to notify an individual or business that they have infringed upon or violated your IP rights. Most infringement doesn’t go beyond the cease and desist letter stage.
In some cases, this may be all that is required to stop the offending behaviour and could see you avoid costly litigation in the future.
Most legitimate businesses or well-respected individuals will pay attention to allegations of infringing activity and respond accordingly.
Of course, there are situations where offenders are already aware they have stolen your IP and will ignore your requests. In these cases, formal legal action may be necessary which is both expensive and time-consuming.
Before sending a cease and desist, it is wise to speak with an attorney. Unjustified threats of infringement against a third party can result in them claiming damages from the person making unjustified threats.
An IP attorney will ensure your notice complies with relevant legislation and that proper checks have been performed to establish ownership and whether there is actually infringement.
If you receive a Cease and Desist letter, it is very important not to ignore it, as costs could escalate dramatically. You should instead seek out the assistance of a qualified IP attorney.
I found them online and initially I was bit hesitant to talk to them about my problem but when I spoke to Barry, I felt more comfortable, and he gave me all the information and advice I wanted without even thinking that I am going to give him business or not. Finally, I went with them, and they made the entire process so smooth and easy for me. john was keeping us updated with each step he was doing. I would recommend these guys for any patent or trademark related service.
I would like to express my thanks to Barry and his team at IP Guardian in Sydney for their assistance with our recent Trademark application. Barry was highly professional, readily available throughout the process and clearly communicated expectations. Barry even helped us refine our application so that we had a greater chance of success which was very much appreciated to avoid extra costs. I would highly recommend Ip Guardian for all your Trademark and Intellectual Property needs.
Barry, last week, you and your professional team, made my year (or probably my next 21 years). So thank you so much for your executive, calm yet very effective actions under extream pressure. Elias Hajjar, Director, TROLLEYON PTY LTD
Informative, understood the business, what it needed and answered questions in a friendly and approachable manner. Easy decision to continue working with IPGuardian for future trademarking
From the day I contacted Barry Meskin until now with my silly amateur questions, he has been nothing short of amazing. I actually NEVER leave reviews anywhere, but I felt the need to do so for Barry and his team. I myself am a tradie, so I felt intimidated speaking to an attorney. But the second I spoke to him on the phone, he made me feel right at home. Never pressured me into any decisions, yet when I decided to go ahead with him, he delivered what I needed much quicker than what I was expecting. I cannot speak highly enough of him and recommend his services 100%.
The team at IP Guardian have made the process extremely straight forward and easy for us to understand exactly what was required. I will highly recommend to our clients who need help with IP.
I have dealt with Barry over the years, his advice and experience has helped me greatly. Looking for to working with him and his team again. Maher.
IP Guardian helps protect words, symbols, letters, numbers, names, signatures, phrases, sounds, shapes and smells. Yes, I said smells.
We've had the pleasure to work closely with Barry for many years. He has been exceptional to deal with and has a keen focus in providing a commercial led IP "go to market" strategy for start-ups and well known brands. Makes it easy and always advises on different ways to navigate through the IP process.
Barry Meskin @ IP Guardian is an experienced and extremely knowledgeable expert in the domain of intellectual property, patents and trademarks. In addition he has been extremely responsive and very professional in all our dealings. I wholeheartedly recommend Barry's services to any business or anyone seeking advice in this area - great quality and great value.