Intellectual property law

Intellectual property is the area of law that deals with protecting the rights of those who create original works. It covers everything from original plays and novels to inventions and company identification marks. The purpose of intellectual property laws is to encourage new technologies, artistic expressions and inventions while promoting economic growth. When individuals know that their creative work will be protected and that they can benefit from their labor, they are more likely to continue to produce things that create jobs, develop new technology, make processes more efficient, and create beauty in the world around us.

There are three main mechanisms for protecting intellectual property: copyrights, patents and trademarks.

Copyrights
Copyrights protect the expressive arts. They give owners exclusive rights to reproduce their work, publicly display or perform their work. Additionally, owners are given economic rights to have financial benefit from their work and prohibit others from doing so without their permission. It is important to understand that copyrights do not protect ideas, only how they're expressed.

Patents
Patents protect an invention from being made, sold or used by others for a certain period of time. If somebody wants to patent his invention he can apply to the Patent and Trademark Office and to file the appropriate paperwork and get the patent he needs to protect the invention and make it profitable.
This process can be complex and time consuming. It is a good idea to hire an intellectual property attorney

Trademarks
Trademarks protect the names and identifying marks of products and companies. The purpose of trademarks is to make it easy for consumers to distinguish competitors from each other.

There are strict laws to protect intellectual property rights. When intellectual property rights are violated, it is important to hire an intellectual property lawyer. An experienced attorney can help a businessman sue for damages that include lost royalties. If the case is successful, the person who violated smb’s intellectual property rights may be required to pay for all of his legal fees in addition to compensating him for using his work without his permission.

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to cover – охватывать

to encourage – поощрять

to promote – способствовать

to benefit – иметь выгоду

to create jobs – создавать рабочие места

trademark - товарный [торговый, фирменный] знак, торговая эмблема, торговая марка

permission – разрешение

Patent and Trademark Office - Ведомство по патентам и товарным знакам США

to file – регистрировать документы

paperwork – документация

time consuming – занимающий много времени

attorney – адвокат, юрист

consumer – потребитель

competitor – конкурент, участник рынка

to sue for damages - возбуждать иск о возмещении убытков

royalties – авторский гонорар

legal fees – судебные издержки

Answer the following questions:

1. What does intellectual property law deal with?

2. What does it cover?

3. What is the purpose of intellectual property law and how do you understand this purpose?

4. What are the ways for protecting intellectual property?

5. What do copyrights protect?

6. What do patents protect?

7. How to patent the invention?

8. How to make this procedure easier?

9. What do trademarks protect?

10. What is the purpose of trademarks?

11. What can a person do in case of violation his intellectual property rights

Task 9. Find equivalents of the following words and word combinations in the text above:

защита интеллектуальной собственности; сфера права; защищать права тех, кто создает оригинальные работы; стимулировать новые технологии; способствовать экономическому росту; охватывать; получать выгоду от труда; создавать красоту; авторское право; воспроизводить; публично экспонировать работу; владелец; собственник; финансовая выгода; запрещать другим; без разрешения; защищать изобретения; определенный период времени; запатентовать изобретение; обращаться куду-либо; сделать выгодным; требующий много времени; сложный; нанимать адвоката по вопросам интеллектуальной собственности; товарный знак; сделать проще; различать конкурентов друг от друга; потребитель; права нарушены; опытный адвокат; убытки; возбуждать иск о возмещении убытков; судебные издержки, без разрешения.

Task 10. (a) Study the text below, making sure you fully comprehend it. Pay special attention to the words and word combinations, describing the peculiarities of intellectual property in the UK and the USA