IP lawyer Terita Kalloo protects 'creations of the mind'

What do you think about when you hear the term intellectual property (IP)?

If protecting your ideas and intangible creations such as music, literature, art, brand, logo or business come to mind then, you’re right!

IP, according to the Intellectual Property Office located on Frederick Street, Port of Spain, is “the expressed creation of the human mind” and intellectual property rights are “granted by the state to creators for defined categories of creations that satisfy a threshold level of newness. The rights are granted with exceptions and limitations.”

The IP office falls under the purview of the Office of the Attorney General and Ministry of Legal Affairs, and it is the local government agency responsible for handling the registration of intellectual property rights.

Copyright and related rights, patents, utility certificates, industrial designs, trademarks and service marks, geographical indications, layout designs of integrated circuits, new plant varieties and trade secrets are different types of IP handled by the department.

IP law while not new to Trinidad and Tobago, has been growing in recent years, said IP lawyer Terita Kalloo, as many more people were seeking to protect their creations and ideas to generate income and build a brand or legacy.

Sunday Newsday met with Kalloo at her office Terita Kalloo Law at Griffith Court on Edward Street in Port of Spain to get an idea of the progress of the practice in the country.

She said there were less than 75 lawyers practising IP law in TT but the demand for protection of rights has been growing, especially in the areas of agriculture, the creative and entertainment industries and for micro, small and medium enterprises.

Kalloo said TT has robust systems to file for protection of IP, but people were unaware about utilising it to their advantage.

While it is not a clear-cut black and white model where costs were concerned, she said the process was fairly simple to manoeuvre.

“People think of it as a frill when in reality it is very beneficial for small businesses and not just large entities. Filing for some IPs can be inexpensive, and people can do it for themselves. You do not need anyone (lawyer) to do this for you, the IP office has a host of resources online to assist.”

Kalloo, 32, had doubts about her career in law and later found her passion in IP law when she was transferred to the IP Office. She now specialises in IP and entertainment law and is in her ninth year of practice in the legal profession and runs a boutique IP law practice.

She graduated from St Augustine Girls' High School where she won a national scholarship for business studies and went on to study law at the University of the West Indies and then at Hugh Wooding Law School in 2012.

She served at the Ministry of the Attorney General as part of their process review team and also as director on the state board National Quarries Ltd, as well as corporate secretary of Build to Last Hardware and Roof Manufacturing Ltd, a post she currently holds.

At the start of the covid19 restrictions in March 2020, Kalloo embarked on a project called Harvester Ltd, the IP Marketplace.

“I always heard people talk about finding your passion and enjoying it, and honestly I never believed it, until I found IP law.”

She said after much research she found that the field was not big enough in TT to run a practice but decided to take steps to sensitise the public about IP law through free education and online pro bono consultations.

Harvester, the IP Marketplace can be accessed online at https://ipharvester.com/. It is an online marketplace where information on all IP related matters can be found, bought, sold, licensed, valuated and funded. IP Harvester comes with qualified IP agents and lawyers, and a list of services to make trading in IP simple and profitable.

Kalloo said with proper IP management many businesses and entrepreneurs can generate income without having to invest large quantities of cash.

“IPs can be monetised and used by a business without having to expend great costs. So, for example, a person can file for a trademark and expand their by using it in other islands by filing for protection, and then grant a license to the local person or company for use there.

“This would ensure fees for the use of the trademark are paid up-front and the business owners generate additional revenue.”

Kalloo said this was one way to start a franchise, as well, which was not meant for the mainstream well-known businesses on the market.

Additionally, she said, the agriculture sector has been one area in which more and more requests for protection have been filed for trade secrets, packaging and manufacturing.

“There is so much innovation that we could lean on and expand on as an industry, especially when exporting our goods.”

And while IP law can generate a lot of income for a lawyer, Kalloo said her blogging and free education in Harvester Ltd, the IP Marketplace were necessary and were a form of giving back to businesses that were hit hard by the pandemic.

She said, “Our entertainment industry and micro, small and medium enterprises have been hit the worst during this pandemic, but banks would not take IP as collateral. This is something that TT needs to embrace and use to its advantage.

“These businesses are so IP rich; they always have to find a smart way to operate because most of them cannot afford the technology that bigger businesses have.”

Capitalising from her own challenges in acquiring a loan from a bank, Kalloo said businesses and government need to bridge the gap and recognise the importance of an IP market.

Hopefully, it was something that can be used locally and regionally for trade and contribute to the ease of doing business, Kalloo said.