Protecting Intellectual Property Throughout The Manufacturing Process

Many companies, including U.S. companies, find manufacturing abroad attractive because of its affordable costs, capacity, and distribution networks. Typically discussions or negotiations with a foreign manufacturer will concern the type of product to be produced, which often involves providing the manufacturer with sufficient detail to enable the manufacturer to provide a proposal. These seemingly harmless discussions regarding necessary manufacturing details may place a company's intellectual property rights at risk. For example, a company may be unable to obtain or enforce a future patent for their product. Therefore, companies should proceed with caution when disclosing information to a foreign manufacturer—even a trusted manufacturer—to bring a new product to market or they could risk losing their intellectual property rights.