For decades, Woodcock attorneys have been helping clients nationwide maximize the value derived from innovation through a combination of legal and business counseling. The firm recognizes the growing importance of managing intellectual property as a strategic asset in the 21st century. Woodcock has a practice area dedicated entirely to intellectual property strategic management. Woodcock’s attorneys help clients leverage and manage their IP by first focusing on the business objectives of its clients and then developing an intellectual property strategy tailored to support those business objectives. Our approach is to identify the business and innovation goals of the client. We then ascertain the client's value chains, business models and product offerings to determine where value may be created and extracted through the effective utilization of IP. Woodcock then focuses on the five main activities of an effective IP program: acquisition, protection, extraction of value, defensive use, and management of intellectual assets. The creation of goals and objectives for each of those activities combine to form an IP strategy that is aligned with the client’s business and innovation strategy.

Intellectual property strategic management expands the traditional role of the IP lawyer to become a business advisor helping corporations achieve their business goals through the effective use of their IP assets. Our lawyers are not only experts in the traditional IP assets of patents, copyrights, trademarks and trade secrets, but also are skilled in business methods, software, licenses, supply chain and distribution contracts, advertising campaigns, and human resource policies. These assets are critical to protect and enhance the competitive position of its clients and to drive value for its clients. These intellectual assets permeate the entire corporation and are used in nearly every aspect of competition. Woodcock helps clients identify, build and manage these assets to expand market share, increase revenue, reduce cost, compete for talent, and/or gain access to capital markets.

Members of Woodcock’s strategic management group have honed their skills leading the intellectual property practice of several Fortune 100 companies and smaller organizations. Two of its lawyers have co-authored The Business of Intellectual Property (Oxford University Press 2008), dedicated to the topic of intellectual property strategy.