Intellectual property and cybersecurity disputes are leading legal issues for technology companies – TechCrunch

No industry is unknown to litigation, but for the technology sector, intellectual property (IP) and patent disputes, followed by cybersecurity and data protection issues, appear to be among the most important legal issues that keep technology company managers awake at night.

According to 17^you Annual Norton Rose Fulbright Litigation Trend Surveywhich surveys hundreds of internal litigation leaders from global corporations, labor and labor disputes are also at the top of the list for technology companies.

Startup teams, legal advisers and other internal stakeholders who want to address these legal challenges need to consider three key factors affecting the sector.

Intellectual property disputes: The most important lawsuit facing the sector

Respondents in the field of technology are more likely to be concerned about intellectual property disputes than any other potential source of dispute, with 46% of them being among the most worrying, compared to 16% in all industries.

Given that the main function of most technology companies is to develop and market innovative technologies and solutions, it is not surprising that technology companies list intellectual property disputes as the most important and relevant to them. Respondents cite the critical nature of intellectual property assets for their core business as the reason why disputes are so dangerous.

The costs associated with these disputes, especially in defending against patent infringement allegations, came first for respondents. Protection against intellectual property disputes can lead to resource depletion, especially given the continuing costs and proliferation of disputes initiated by “patent trolls” – entities whose main activity is to obtain and enforce patents against technology companies – far outweigh the costs. with the use of the patent for the provision of goods and services.

It is reported that many respondents are expanding their legal teams. Strategies include adding additional in-house legal staff, engaging external advisers to focus on specific intellectual property strategies, expanding investigations and enforcement actions against potentially infringing activities, increasing the protection of company patents, and building more mature and stable process of preparation and review of contracts for IS-related contracts.

Technology companies feel exposed to disputes over cybersecurity and data protection

Respondents in the field of technology cited cybersecurity and data protection issues as the most important, affecting the trend of disputes, more than any other industry – 71% said they felt more exposed to cybersecurity / data protection disputes than the previous 12 months. They said protecting both their own information and that of their customers was crucial, especially in an increasingly global market.