Intellectual property

Intellectual Property

Intellectual Property is the legal property rights to anything which can be broadly described as ‘creations of the mind’. This means owners are granted rights to things such as discoveries, inventions and technological advances – as well as to works of a creative nature. Common types of intellectual property include trademarks, copyrights and patents. Within the NHS, the NHS Trusts – as the employer – owns all IP generated by its employees in the course of their employment. This is common practice in most organisations. However, the inventor will be recognised, and NHS Trusts are encouraged to adopt revenue sharing schemes.