About Us

We are intellectual property specialists.

It’s our key capability and what we are experts at. By staying focused on our key service offerings, your business will benefit from our depth of knowledge in this area.

We have a proven track record for our strong strategic approach, clear recommendations, and strong results relevant to your business.

Actuate IP was founded in 2002. The firm comprises of Actuate IP, the intellectual property law firm and trade mark attorney arm of the practice – and Actuate Patents, the patent attorney arm of the practice. We have assembled a team of specialist intellectual property lawyers, patent and trade mark attorneys with senior practitioners with backgrounds from top tier IP firms and specialist IP firms.

As an established boutique practice, the team has retained its key attributes of depth of technical knowledge, agility and strong strategical thinkers. The team has a proven track record in the industry as an equally strong alternative to top-tier firms. We are of a size that can handle your matter with the attention it requires, but we also have the numbers to handle complex IP projects.

Actuate IP was an early adopter of replacing the uncertainties of time-based billing with an innovative fixed-fee model for IP legal services. This project management-based approach to the provision of IP services and litigation means you have greater certainty over the strategy developed & implemented, outcomes and legal spending. This innovative approach means there is shared accountability for your legal project.

By working with Actuate IP, we take a long-term view of your ongoing IP needs and do not charge you for any meetings or calls you have with us to discuss your ongoing or upcoming projects. We call this Unlimited Access. We do this because it fosters a stronger working relationship and removes any obstacle to information flow. Better information flow means a better outcome.

How We Stand Apart

We Are Specialists In Intellectual Property

Intellectual property is our focus, what we do, and we’re good at it. We are not a generalist practice. Instead, you will directly benefit from our depth of IP expertise, strategic approach and execution of those strategies.

Our three core areas of IP expertise are:

(1) intellectual property dispute resolution and litigation (across all subsets of IP including patents, trade marks, designs, misleading or deceptive conduct, passing off and protection of confidential information

(2) trade mark searches, filing, prosecution and registration, and,

(3) patent searches, drafting, filing, prosecution through to grant.

We Have A Global Reach

We have a global reach because business today is a global marketplace. Our clients trust us to manage their worldwide IP assets and interests. We do it effectively and efficiently. We act as your in-house IP project manager in other countries.

This ensures a consistent IP strategy is rolled out for you worldwide. As an established firm, we have used that journey to work only with the best and most like-minded network of overseas associates. We work for startups, other advisers (lawyers, accountants, brand agencies), sophisticated SMEs, and as the in-house counsel of larger corporates. They all have one thing in common – they recognise the value of IP.

We Work With You Differently – Fee Certainty And Better Value For You

The market is changing. Clients don’t want to be charged for every six minutes they spend with their lawyers, receiving invoice after invoice. Other industries don’t charge that way, so why should lawyers?

You have a responsibility to control your spending with greater certainty, and we understand that. So, at Actuate IP, we work on a Project-Fixed-Fee basis. Now that’s a game changer. At the start of each IP project, we carefully scope it out, undertake a legal position assessment, provide a project plan, and set out fixed fees for each stage.

How Are We Able To Work On Project Fixed Fee Basis?

We can confidently scope your project because we are experienced in what we do. We know how a matter is likely to unfold, the different pathways that will be presented and the choices that will need to be made. With a project fixed fee agreement in place, we then collaborate with you and focus on what is important – getting the right job done.

Our innovative approach encourages collaboration and greater certainty. Traditional obstacles, like hard to control legal spend or exposure to inefficient time-based charges, are removed. Instead at the heart of it is an approach which is purely now motivated by achieving results in the most effective way possible.

Unlimited Access

We know that today’s market does not want to pay exorbitant legal fees. That’s why we have structured our firm to meet that expectation. We are innovative and use technology and project management methodology to confine firm overheads and expenses to what is necessary.

This means we don’t pass on unnecessary overheads and other variables into the service we provide you. With a fixed-fee project in place, you can communicate with your Actuate IP team about that project as often as required (email, meetings, phone) without extra fees. We call this Unlimited Access, which translates into direct legal cost savings for you.

Why Don't We Charge for Unlimited Access?

Why? Because we believe it fosters a productive client relationship and, more importantly, encourages key information sharing, which is vital to achieving the right IP project outcome. As a result of our innovative approach, you benefit by paying for what is necessary – our IP skills and expertise.