Overview
Many businesses license intellectual property (IP) rights such as copyright from third parties. The licence will give the licensee a contractual right to use the licensor’s IP rights and therefore avoid an infringement of the IP right. Complex issues regarding the protection and realisation of IP rights can arise where a licensor (i.e., the person or entity that owns the IP rights) gets into financial difficulties. Although the Insolvency Act 1986 does not provide for the automatic termination of IP licences on the commencement of insolvency proceedings, an insolvency practitioner has broad powers which include the ability to:
- transfer the IP and licence; and/or
- repudiate (i.e., decline to perform) the licence;…