The Caribbean Industrial Research Institute (CARIRI) and the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) have teamed up to host ‘The Intellectual Property Clinic’. The first of its kind in Trinidad and Tobago, The Intellectual Property Clinic will seek to bridge the gaps in knowledge, provide a competent base to gather information and allow you to understand your rights.
The IPO Clinic takes the form of an individual consultation and is scheduled for the first Thursday of every month at the Centre for Enterprise Development (CED), Innovation Avenue Freeport. Once a month, you have the opportunity to meet with an IP Officer for a 30-minute period. The IP Officer will be able to assist you within this time period with any questions you may have about your intellectual property (ideas/products/inventions/innovations) and how you can go about securing it. The sessions are completely confidential and are free of charge.
Some of the things the IPO Clinic seeks to address are Information on the protection of IP using Intellectual Property Rights (IPR): Patents, Utility Models, Trademarks, Industrial Designs, Integrated Circuits, Trade Secrets, etc; education, information and training in IP; assistance in the commercialization of IP; and support with IP issues in the Business Plan among others.
The first clinic was conducted on Thursday 5th February 2015, with an impressive response. One of the participants from the clinic, Mr. Derron Sandy said that he was grateful and satisfied with the knowledge that was imparted to him. He is in the business of Creative Arts and was particularly interested in the copyrighting of ideas, drafts and prototypes. He is currently in partnership with another person and is seeking to diminish potential conflict. He is thankful for being a participant in the IPO Clinic and the advice that he was able to receive. Another participant, Mr. Jordon Miller is in the business of Research and Development and was thankful for the Clinic as well. Both participants stated that they would recommend the programme to their business colleagues as well.
The Clinic is expected to continue over the next few months and anyone who is interested in setting up their own consultation with an IP Officer can contact CARIRI at 299-0209 ext 2403 or via email at ipclinic@cedcariri.com or register online at www.cariri.com