IP Audits

Intellectual property sits on your balance sheet as an asset, but it’s easy to underestimate what it’s worth. If you’re looking to sell your business now or in the future, an IP audit can identify those assets, help with any valuation, and check that they’re properly protected, owned by the business and ready to be transferred or commercialised as part of a future deal.

An IP audit identifies all of the IP a business owns or uses, registered and unregistered, and helps unlock its potential by flagging opportunities and setting a strategy for the future. It can safeguard assets, support investor confidence and identify risk. We’ve carried out audits for businesses of every size, so there’s no such thing as too small or too large.

An audit can help by:

• identifying existing rights to manage risk
• identifying third-party rights that could affect you
• confirming IP ownership
• supporting business valuations, investment rounds, sales and acquisitions
• spotting opportunities to register, protect or commercialise IP
• reviewing contracts, licences and employment arrangements
• catching gaps in protection early, before they become disputes
• setting a clear action plan for managing and growing the value of your IP

It’s particularly useful if you’re preparing for a sale, a round of investment, a merger, an acquisition or a restructure, or developing new products, software, branding or creative content. It’s also worth considering if you’re entering into licensing, franchising, manufacturing or distribution arrangements, or if your business relies heavily on confidential information, know-how, data, trademarks, designs or copyright.

We can talk you through the likely cost of an audit. It may also be possible to get funding from the UK Intellectual Property Office of up to £2,250 including VAT if your business is eligible, which can reduce the cost significantly.

You’ll get an initial consultation, a written report setting out your IP strategy, the assets you have (or should have), the protections available and any risks, and a follow-up consultation to talk through the report and next steps.

Know what you own, and you’ll know what’s worth protecting.