International Application: A patent application filed under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) that seeks protection for an invention in multiple countries simultaneously.
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Interference Proceedings in Patents: A proceeding before the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to determine the priority of inventions between two or more parties claiming the same invention in their patent applications or overlapping inventions.
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Inter Partes Reexamination: A proceeding before the United States Patent and Trademark Office where the validity of one or more claims of a patent are challenged and the party initiating the proceeding has the right to participate. For more information, see our Inter Partes Review (IPR) Proceedings page.
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Intent to Use: A legal declaration by a trademark applicant that they have a bona fide intention to use in the future a trademark in commerce.
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Intellectual Property Indemnification & Indemnity Agreements: Agreements that provide indemnification and possibly a right to a defense against third-party intellection property infringement claims. For more information, see our Intellectual Property Indemnification & Indemnity Agreements page..
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Intellectual Property Audits & Due Diligence: IP Audits are frequently used in the due diligence process to determine the extent of IP assets and any gaps in coverage, which would allow a competitor entry into the marketplace for a feature or piece of technology. For more information, see our Intellectual Property Audits & Due Diligence page.
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Intellectual Property (IP): Intangible assets including patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets, protected by law to incentivize innovation and creativity. IP rights typically confer exclusivity and the right to exclude others from using the IP.
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INTA: International Trademark Association, a global association of trademark owners and professionals dedicated to promoting and protecting trademarks and related intellectual property rights.
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Insurance Coverage Disputes: A dispute between an insurer, such as an insurance company, and the insured typically over whether a loss is covered or not. For more information, see our Insurance Coverage Disputes page.
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Infringement: The unauthorized use, reproduction, or exploitation of intellectual property rights, such as patents, trademarks, or copyrights, without the permission of the rights holder.
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Information Disclosure Statement (IDS): See definition of IDS above.
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Inequitable Conduct: A doctrine of patent law that renders a patent unenforceable due to misrepresentations to the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) or failure to disclose information material to patenting. This doctrine requires an intent to deceive.
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Indirect Infringement: A type of infringement that occurs when a party contributes to or induces another to infringe a patent, trademark, or copyright. Indirect infringement usually requires an act of direct infringement by a third-party and a relationship between the third party and the alleged indirect infringer.
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Independent Claim: A patent claim that does not depend on any other patent claim.
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Indemnity & Hold Harmless Agreements: Agreement relating to where one party agrees to indemnify and hold harmless another party. These provisions are common in commercial agreements. For more information, see our Indemnity & Hold Harmless Agreements page.
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Incontestable Trademark: A registered trademark that can only be canceled for very limited reasons, such as fraud on the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
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Incontestability: A legal status conferred on a trademark registration after a certain period of continuous and exclusive use, during which the mark becomes immune to certain challenges to its validity, such as claims of descriptiveness.
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Impersonation & Username Squatting: A strategy to divert sales from a trademark owner or famous person by using their username on social media or pretending to be someone else. For more information, see our Impersonation & Username Squatting page.
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Illegal Gray Market Goods Enforcement: Typically, gray market goods sales occur when an authorized reseller purchases a genuine good and then attempts to sell it through a prohibited channel. For more information, see our Illegal Gray Market Goods Enforcement page.
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IDS: Information Disclosure Statement, a document submitted to the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) by an applicant to disclose relevant prior art or information known to the applicant that may affect the patentability of the invention. Often, an IDS is used to meet an applicant’s and his/her counsel’s duty of candor.
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