Practical guidance for businesses, with a focus on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)

The Operational Guide for Italian Businesses in Cases of Industrial Property Rights Infringement (Guida operativa per le imprese italiane in caso di violazioni dei diritti di Proprietà Industriale), is the result of a joint project promoted and coordinated by MIMIT, through its Directorate-General for Industrial Property – Italian Patent and Trademark Office, and implemented in collaboration with UNICRI.

The initiative aims to strengthen businesses’ capacity to prevent, monitor and address infringements of industrial property rights, with particular attention to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Despite their contribution to innovation, manufacturing excellence and local economies, SMEs may lack the legal, technical and financial resources needed to protect their industrial property rights effectively, particularly when infringements involve digital channels and advanced technologies.

The new publication provides practical guidance on the steps businesses can take when they discover or suspect an infringement of a registered trademark. It addresses key stages of the response process, from collecting preliminary evidence and preparing complaints to cooperating with law enforcement during investigations, assessing civil and criminal remedies, and navigating judicial proceedings.

By explaining the available legal options, their respective advantages and potential challenges, the guide seeks to help businesses make informed decisions about how best to protect their rights.

Designed as an accessible operational resource, the publication includes separate sections on civil and criminal proceedings. 

The guide draws on a 2023 publication developed by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) under the European Multidisciplinary Platform Against Criminal Threats (EMPACT), which provides guidance to intellectual property rights holders on reporting intellectual property crime.

Strengthening protection against counterfeiting

The publication represents the first step in a broader initiative to provide Italian businesses with practical tools to safeguard their industrial property rights. Two additional operational guides, focusing on industrial designs and patents, are planned.

Through this collaboration, MIMIT and UNICRI seek to support businesses, particularly SMEs, in responding more effectively to industrial property infringements and strengthening their capacity to protect innovation, competitiveness and legitimate economic activity.