Become a client

Thank you for your interest in becoming a client of Hutchinson IP.  So that we can work together effectively, we need everyone to agree to our standard terms of business.  Our terms of business are important as they set-out important things about our business relationship, such as:

  • our responsibilities to you and the extent of our liability;
  • how and when you must provide instructions;
  • what happens if a conflict of interest arises;
  • our fee structure; and
  • what to do if something goes wrong.

Our terms of business can be found here.

 

Our client:

On any particular case, we can only work for one person (our “client”). Deciding who should be the “client” is important because such things as legal privilege, our obligation of confidentiality and the person or company whose interests must be put foremost, usually attaches to our client.  Moreover, as we can only accept and act upon instructions from our client, and because our client is ultimately responsible for paying our bills and disbursements, having this person or company clearly defined is very important.

Nevertheless, we can add other “contacts” to our case files, so our client does not have to be the “applicant” (legal owner) of the rights in question, the “fee payer” (the person to whom invoices are sent) or even the “inventor” or “designer” (the person who originally created the IP).  If you need any further clarification or explanation, then please let us know.

Usually, if you want us to do work for, or on behalf of a company, the company will be our “client”.  If a company signs-up as a client, we will also need you to designate a single person to instruct us – this avoids the possibility of us receiving conflicting instructions from different people! The default position should be to sign-up as a company.

However, if you are a private individual (i.e. if no company exists), or if you are an unincorporated body (such as a partnership, charitable organisation, etc.) then someone must be appointed to sign-up as an individual “client” to act on behalf of themselves or the group.

 

Anti-money-laundering:

In addition, when signing-up as a new client, we also need to carry our anti-money laundering regulations (AMLR) checks to prove the bona fide and identity of the person involved.

We will need you to send us a copy of at least one form of photo identification (e.g. the photo page of your passport, government-issued ID, or driving licence), and proof of your home address (e.g. a bank statement, official letter or utility bill bearing your name and home address).  We will only retain these documents for the purposes of completing the AMLR checks, and any copies you send us will be immediately, and securely destroyed.

You can attach these documents to the form when you sign our terms of business on this web site as a company client, or as a private individual.

 

Data protection:

You also need to read and accept our Privacy Policy, whcih can be found here.  Under the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR), we also need you send your contact and personal data through our dedicated GDPR portal, on this web site.

 

Signing up as a client:

To sign-up as a company, you’ll need to complete the following:

  1. E-sign our terms of business on behalf of the company (opens in new window); and
  2. Complete the client data submission in the GDPR portal (opens in new window).

 

To sign-up as an individual, you’ll need to complete the following: