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Intellectual Property Articles
Expert articles and practical legal guides on intellectual property for new zealand businesses.
How To Do An NZ Trademark Search Before You Apply
You’ve finally landed on a business name you love. It looks great on your logo, the domain might be available, and you can already picture it on your packaging. Before you spend...
23 January 2026
TM vs ®: How To Use Trademark Symbols On Your Logo In New Zealand
If you’ve spent time perfecting your brand, your logo and brand name probably feel like some of your most valuable business assets. Then you get to the part that trips up a...
20 January 2026
Confidential Information In New Zealand: What It Is and How To Protect It
In a small business, your edge often comes down to what you know (and what only you know). It might be a customer list you’ve built over years, a supplier pricing arrangement,...
20 January 2026
How To Use The Copyright Symbol (©) In New Zealand
If you run a small business, your content is often one of your biggest assets. It might be your website copy, product photos, training manuals, social media graphics, online course videos, proposals,...
15 January 2026
What Is BIMI And Do New Zealand Businesses Need A Trade Mark To Use It?
Email trust has never mattered more for New Zealand small businesses. Inboxes are more crowded than ever, scams are increasingly sophisticated, and customers are cautious about who they open emails from and...
15 January 2026
Key Instagram Copyright Rules For New Zealand Businesses
As a business, avoiding Instagram can be challenging - after all, it might even be a core part of your operations. Whether Instagram is central to your business strategy or just one...
29 January 2025When Independent Contractors Create Work, Who Owns The Intellectual Property? (2026 Updated)
You’ve hired a designer to build your logo, a developer to create your app, or a marketing contractor to write your website copy. They deliver the files, you pay the invoice, and...
6 January 2025
How Do Royalties Work? (2026 Updated)
Royalties can be a great way to earn ongoing income from something you’ve created (or own), without having to do all the selling and distribution yourself. But once you get past the...
6 January 2025
Received A Trade Mark Adverse Report From the Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand? Here Are Your Options (2026 Updated)
Putting time (and money) into your brand is exciting - until you receive a message from the Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand (IPONZ) saying your trade mark application has an “adverse...
6 January 2025
Is Cybersquatting Legal? (2026 Updated)
Buying a domain name can feel like grabbing a prime piece of digital real estate. But if the domain you’ve registered looks a lot like someone else’s brand (or you’ve registered it...
6 January 2025
Want To Protect Your Ideas Or Copyright? Here’s How An NDA Or Copyright Disclaimer Can Help. (2026 Updated)
You’ve finally got a great idea: a new product, a unique brand concept, a course, an app, or even just the “secret sauce” behind how you do things. Then the real question...
6 January 2025
Thinking About Registering An International Trade Mark? (2026 Updated)
If you’re building a brand in New Zealand, chances are you’re not thinking “local only”. Even if you start small, it’s normal to end up selling online, exporting, or getting enquiries from...
6 January 2025
What Are Plant Breeders’ Rights? (2026 Updated)
If you’ve spent months (or years) developing a new plant variety, it’s completely normal to wonder: how do I stop someone else from copying this and profiting from my work? That’s exactly...
6 January 2025
How Do You Protect Your Slogan Or Tagline From Your Competitor? (2026 Updated)
Your slogan (or tagline) can be one of the most valuable parts of your brand. It’s the line people remember, repeat, and search for when they’re ready to buy. That’s also why...
6 January 2025
Protecting Your IP With A Trade Mark (2026 Updated)
You’ve put real time (and money) into building your brand - the name, the logo, the packaging, the vibe, and the reputation that comes with it. The tricky part is that brand...
6 January 2025
A Guide To Protecting Your Trade Secrets In New Zealand (2026 Updated)
If you’ve put real time (and money) into building a business, chances are you’ve created something valuable that isn’t obvious from the outside - a process, a method, a pricing approach, a...
6 January 2025
Do I Need To Register Copyright In New Zealand? (2026 Updated)
If you’re creating content, building a brand, writing code, designing products, or even just posting regularly online, it’s completely normal to wonder: do you actually need to register copyright in New Zealand...
6 January 2025
Responding To An Adverse Report From the Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand (2026 Updated)
Getting an adverse report from the Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand (IPONZ) can feel like a hard stop - especially if you thought your trade mark (or other IP right) was...
6 January 2025
What Is The ™ Symbol? (2026 Updated)
If you’re building a brand in New Zealand, you’ve probably seen the ™ symbol next to a business name, product name, tagline, or logo. It can feel a bit mysterious at first:...
6 January 2025
Creating Content On Youtube? Watch Out For Copyright (2026 Updated)
YouTube is one of the best platforms for building a brand, marketing your business, and reaching customers without a huge upfront budget. But there’s a catch: copyright issues can turn a great...
6 January 2025
Register A Trade Mark In New Zealand (2026 Updated)
You can spend months building a brand people love - the name, the logo, the packaging, the vibe - and then find out someone else is using something confusingly similar. That’s a...
6 January 2025
Indigenous Knowledge And Intellectual Property Rights (2026 Updated)
Using Indigenous knowledge in a business can be powerful. It can also be legally (and culturally) complex. Whether you’re creating products inspired by mātauranga Māori, incorporating Indigenous words or symbols into your...
6 January 2025
What Is A Copyright Licence Agreement? (2026 Updated)
If you’ve created something original for your business (like a logo, website copy, training materials, photos, software, or even a catchy jingle), chances are you’ll need to let someone else use it...
6 January 2025
Fair Dealing & YouTube: A Guide To Copyright Exceptions (2026 Updated)
If you create content for YouTube (or you’re using YouTube to market your business), you’ve probably had that moment of doubt: “Can I use this clip?” “Is this fair dealing?” “Will Content...
6 January 2025
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