Brand Licensing and Merchandising
We advise regularly on the drafting and negotiation of agreements involving elements of brand licensing, such as sponsorship, advertising, merchandising, manufacturing, franchising, product R&D and selective distribution. Our large bank of contract precedents means we can quickly and cost-effectively prepare first drafts once we have the heads of terms or we can help with devising the heads.
Our expertise is backed up by extensive experience of general commercial issues such as advertising and promotion regulations, internet campaigns, user generated content issues, defamation and trade libel claims, and the competition law issues that arise out of all of these.
Our lawyers advising on the negotiation and drafting of such agreements also handle IP disputes and litigation. Drawing on that experience helps us to anticipate the litigation risks that may be faced during and after the life of the agreement.
Many of our team also have experience of working in-house. As a result, we understand the time pressures and commercial drivers behind these types of agreements. Points are negotiated, resolved and drafted with the practicalities firmly in mind. In particular, we recognise that the goals for such contracts are:
- To identify and then allocate the risks clearly, effectively and succinctly;
- Without allowing negotiations to sour future relationships; and
- Ensuring costs remain within budget and proportionate to the project.