The intellectual property pro bono initiative - IP Pro Bono – is a long-standing pro bono project which provides intellectual property advice and legal support for claimants and defendants in intellectual property disputes.
Founded as a collaboration between several leading IP organisations, including: the Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA), the Chartered Institute of Trade Mark Attorneys (CITMA), the Intellectual Property Lawyers’ Association (IPLA), The Intellectual Property Office of the United Kingdom (UK IPO), the IP Bar and The Law Society. It aims to meet the challenge set out by His Honour Judge Richard Hacon, that IP legal services providers should come together to provide intellectual property advice and legal support for individuals and small businesses who find themselves involved in intellectual property disputes, who could not otherwise afford to meet the costs of professional representation.
From June 2023, LawWorks will take over the administration of the project (funded by CIPA and CITMA) and the scheme will be run through the UK Pro Bono Portal.
Users of the UK Pro Bono Portal who have checked IP as an area of interest, will automatically receive the new IP opportunities in their weekly emails, with allocation occurring on a Thursday (as with the Not-for-Profit Programme). For anyone with an IP team who is not yet onboarded onto the Portal please do get in touch with our digital team, digitalservices@lawworks.org.uk.