Built for In-House Counsel
Court-Ready IP Evidence Without the Court-Ready Price Tag
Your company creates IP faster than your team can protect it. immut gives you blockchain-verified evidence of creation dates, trade secret documentation, and prior art records that hold up in court across multiple jurisdictions.
The Challenge
What Keeps In-House Counsel Up at Night
IP protection challenges that in-house counsel face every day.
IP Creation Outpaces Legal Protection
Engineering, design, and R&D teams generate protectable IP daily. Patent filings cannot keep up, leaving the majority of your company's innovations without formal evidence of ownership or creation dates.
Trade Secret Documentation Is Inconsistent
Regulators and courts require reasonable steps to protect trade secrets. But getting technical teams to document their innovations systematically is an ongoing battle.
Cross-Border IP Disputes Need Multi-Jurisdiction Evidence
Operating internationally means IP disputes can arise in any jurisdiction. You need evidence that is recognised across the UK, EU, US, and beyond without separate filings in each.
Prior Art Defence Requires Contemporaneous Evidence
When a competitor asserts a patent against you, prior art defence depends on proving your company had the knowledge before their filing date. Retrospective documentation is weak evidence.
The Solution
How immut Fits Your Workflow
Blockchain-verified IP protection designed for how in-house counsel actually work.
Systematic Evidence Collection
Deploy immut across departments to capture IP creation evidence in real time. Build a comprehensive, verifiable record that satisfies trade secret reasonable steps requirements.
Multi-Jurisdiction Recognition
Blockchain timestamps are recognised under the UK Civil Evidence Act 1995, EU eIDAS Regulation, and US Federal Rules of Evidence. One timestamp, global protection.
Prior Art Defence Library
Build a timestamped repository of your company's innovations. If a competitor asserts a patent, you have ready-made prior art evidence with verifiable dates.
Employee IP Assignment Evidence
Timestamp work products as they are created to establish clear records of what was produced during employment. Simplify enforcement of IP assignment clauses.
Real-World Scenario
A Day in the Life: General Counsel Defending Against Patent Assertion
Elena is general counsel at a mid-size tech company. A patent troll has asserted a broad patent covering a technique her engineering team has used for three years. The licensing demand is $2 million.
Elena searches the company's immut records and finds timestamped documentation of the technique from 18 months before the troll's patent filing date. The blockchain certificates prove the company had prior knowledge.
Her team exports the certificates with full verification details — blockchain transaction hashes, timestamps, and cryptographic proofs. The evidence package is assembled in hours, not weeks.
She presents the prior art evidence to the patent troll's lawyers. The blockchain timestamps are independently verifiable and clearly pre-date the patent filing.
The patent troll withdraws the assertion. The total cost of defence: the time to search the database and export certificates, versus the $2 million demand.
A $2 million patent assertion defeated with blockchain evidence that cost less than $30/month to maintain.
Benefits
Why In-House Counsel Choose immut
Court-Ready Certificates
Each timestamp produces a certificate with cryptographic proof, blockchain transaction details, and verification instructions that legal teams can present directly.
Reasonable Steps Compliance
Demonstrate to courts that your company takes reasonable steps to protect trade secrets, a legal requirement in most jurisdictions.
Reduced Litigation Costs
Clear evidence of creation dates resolves many disputes before they reach litigation. When they do go to court, your evidence is pre-packaged and verifiable.
Scalable Protection
Protect the IP that patents cannot cover. Unlimited timestamps mean you can protect every innovation, not just the ones with the largest commercial potential.
Independent Verification
Anyone can verify a timestamp on the public blockchain without contacting immut. The evidence speaks for itself.
No Disclosure Required
Unlike patents, blockchain timestamping requires zero public disclosure. Your trade secrets remain secret while being legally protected.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Are blockchain timestamps admissible as evidence in court?
Yes. In the UK, the Civil Evidence Act 1995 covers electronic records including blockchain data. The EU eIDAS Regulation explicitly recognises electronic timestamps. In the US, blockchain evidence falls under the Federal Rules of Evidence for electronic records. Chinese courts have accepted blockchain evidence since 2018.
Does this satisfy trade secret reasonable steps requirements?
Systematic timestamping of trade secret documentation is strong evidence of reasonable steps. Combined with access controls, NDAs, and employee policies, it creates a robust trade secret protection framework that courts recognise.
Can opposing counsel challenge blockchain timestamps?
The cryptographic proof and public blockchain verification make challenges extremely difficult. Unlike internal timestamps or notarised documents, blockchain records cannot be altered by any party. The mathematics and decentralised nature of blockchain provide inherent credibility.
How does this complement our existing patent portfolio?
Blockchain timestamps protect everything patents do not cover — trade secrets, processes, interim innovations, and early-stage ideas. They also provide additional evidence of invention dates for patented inventions, strengthening your overall IP position.
What is the chain of custody for evidence purposes?
Each timestamp creates a cryptographic hash tied to a specific blockchain transaction. The hash proves the exact file existed at the exact time. The chain of custody is mathematical — the blockchain provides an unbroken, publicly verifiable record.
Ready to Protect Your IP?
Book a call to see how immut gives in-house counsel instant, blockchain-verified proof of their innovations. Get protected on the call.