--- title: "Guides · Academy | Pitch, European law firm" description: "Plain-English guides from the Pitch Academy on IP, IT, data and company law, newest first." url: https://www.pitch.law/academy/guides --- Academy # Guides Plain-English guides to the legal questions our clients ask most. Type - [All](https://www.pitch.law/academy) - [Guides](https://www.pitch.law/academy/guides) - [News](https://www.pitch.law/academy/news) Topic - [All topics](https://www.pitch.law/academy/guides) - [Intellectual property](https://www.pitch.law/academy/guides/topics/intellectual-property) - [Patents](https://www.pitch.law/academy/guides/topics/patents) - [New gTLDs](https://www.pitch.law/academy/guides/topics/gtld) - [Information Technology](https://www.pitch.law/academy/guides/topics/information-technology) - [Privacy & Data Protection](https://www.pitch.law/academy/guides/topics/privacy) - [Commercial](https://www.pitch.law/academy/guides/topics/commercial) - [Corporate and M\&A](https://www.pitch.law/academy/guides/topics/corporate-m-a) - [Tax](https://www.pitch.law/academy/guides/topics/tax) - [Legal Aspects of Artificial Intelligence](https://www.pitch.law/academy/guides/topics/legal-aspects-of-artificial-intelligence) * [Guide · Privacy & Data Protection](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-under-swiss-fadp-and-gdpr) ### [AI under Swiss Law and the GDPR: Key Differences](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-under-swiss-fadp-and-gdpr) [What the revised Swiss FADP and the GDPR mean for companies that build or use AI services: scope, legal bases, impact assessments, transfers, sanctions and the EU AI Act.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-under-swiss-fadp-and-gdpr) * [Guide · Intellectual property](https://www.pitch.law/academy/protecting-software-intellectual-property) ### [Can I Protect My Software?](https://www.pitch.law/academy/protecting-software-intellectual-property) [Software is protected by copyright, sometimes by patent, and by trade secret law. This article explains what each protects, who owns the code, and how the rights combine.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/protecting-software-intellectual-property) * [Guide · Commercial](https://www.pitch.law/academy/commercial-contracts-overview) ### [Commercial Contracts: a Map](https://www.pitch.law/academy/commercial-contracts-overview) [The main families of commercial contract, the EU and national rules that frame them, and where risk and value tend to sit.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/commercial-contracts-overview) * [Guide · Information Technology](https://www.pitch.law/academy/database-rights-and-trade-secrets) ### [Database Rights and Trade Secrets](https://www.pitch.law/academy/database-rights-and-trade-secrets) [How the EU database right, copyright and trade secret law protect data and databases, what each requires, and where contracts must fill the gaps.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/database-rights-and-trade-secrets) * [Guide · Commercial](https://www.pitch.law/academy/distribution-reseller-agreements) ### [Distribution and Reseller Agreements](https://www.pitch.law/academy/distribution-reseller-agreements) [How to structure distribution and reseller agreements in the EU: exclusivity, termination protection, online sales, and the brand provisions that keep control.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/distribution-reseller-agreements) * [Guide · Intellectual property](https://www.pitch.law/academy/udrp-and-domain-name-disputes) ### [Domain Name Disputes: the Uniform Dispute Resolution Policy](https://www.pitch.law/academy/udrp-and-domain-name-disputes) [How a bad-faith domain name can be recovered under the UDRP and URS, and under the separate procedure for .eu names, under country-code procedures, or through the courts.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/udrp-and-domain-name-disputes) * [Guide · Intellectual property](https://www.pitch.law/academy/hidden-intellectual-property-audit) ### [Finding the IP You Already Have](https://www.pitch.law/academy/hidden-intellectual-property-audit) [Most companies own more intellectual property than they have registered. This article explains which rights arise without registration, how an IP audit finds them, and why ownership matters.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/hidden-intellectual-property-audit) * [Guide · Patents](https://www.pitch.law/academy/freedom-to-operate-analysis) ### [Freedom-to-Operate Analysis](https://www.pitch.law/academy/freedom-to-operate-analysis) [What a freedom-to-operate analysis is, how claims are read against a product, what it can and cannot tell you, and what to do when it finds a problem.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/freedom-to-operate-analysis) * [Guide · Corporate and M\&A](https://www.pitch.law/academy/startup-funding-rounds) ### [Funding Rounds: Term Sheets and Investment Agreements](https://www.pitch.law/academy/startup-funding-rounds) [How an equity round for a company in the EU works, the term sheet, what each clause does, the investment and shareholders' agreements, and what investors check first.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/startup-funding-rounds) * [Guide · Tax](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ip-grants-tax-incentives-belgium) ### [Grants and Tax Incentives for IP in Belgium](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ip-grants-tax-incentives-belgium) [An overview of the Belgian instruments that lower the cost of creating IP and the tax on the income it earns, and the documents you need before you can claim them.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ip-grants-tax-incentives-belgium) * [Guide · Intellectual property](https://www.pitch.law/academy/how-to-value-ip-portfolio) ### [How to Value an IP Portfolio](https://www.pitch.law/academy/how-to-value-ip-portfolio) [Why and when an IP portfolio is valued, the three standard valuation approaches, and the legal facts that decide whether a right is worth what its owner thinks.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/how-to-value-ip-portfolio) * [Guide · Corporate and M\&A](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ip-due-diligence-guide) ### [IP in Due Diligence](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ip-due-diligence-guide) [What a buyer or investor checks about a company's intellectual property, why chain of title is the most common problem, and how a seller can prepare.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ip-due-diligence-guide) * [Guide · Intellectual property](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ip-lifecycle-management) ### [IP Lifecycle Management: the Stages of an IP Right](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ip-lifecycle-management) [Every IP right is created, protected, maintained, used and ends one day. The stages of IP lifecycle management, their legal terms and the choices at each.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ip-lifecycle-management) * [Guide · Commercial](https://www.pitch.law/academy/technology-transfer-agreements) ### [Know-How and Technology Transfer Agreements](https://www.pitch.law/academy/technology-transfer-agreements) [How to transfer know-how, patents or software to a partner by contract: defining what moves, keeping know-how confidential, and the EU competition rules.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/technology-transfer-agreements) * [Guide · Commercial](https://www.pitch.law/academy/licensing-agreements) ### [Licensing Agreements](https://www.pitch.law/academy/licensing-agreements) [How to structure an IP licence: scope, royalties, improvements, quality control, termination, and the EU rules that frame it.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/licensing-agreements) * [Guide · Corporate and M\&A](https://www.pitch.law/academy/mergers-acquisitions-overview) ### [M\&A for Growing Businesses](https://www.pitch.law/academy/mergers-acquisitions-overview) [A practical walk through an M\&A deal, share or asset deal, price mechanisms, warranties, change of control and getting from signing to closing.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/mergers-acquisitions-overview) * [Guide · Commercial](https://www.pitch.law/academy/manufacturing-supply-agreements) ### [Manufacturing and Supply Agreements](https://www.pitch.law/academy/manufacturing-supply-agreements) [What a manufacturing or supply agreement must settle: specifications, quality, liability, exclusivity and, above all, who owns the tooling, know-how and improvements.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/manufacturing-supply-agreements) * [Guide · Commercial](https://www.pitch.law/academy/master-services-agreements-sow) ### [Master Services Agreements and Statements of Work](https://www.pitch.law/academy/master-services-agreements-sow) [How a master services agreement and statements of work split the legal terms from the project detail, and how EU and national rules shape the key clauses.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/master-services-agreements-sow) * [Guide · Patents](https://www.pitch.law/academy/prior-art-search-patents) ### [Prior Art and How to Search for It](https://www.pitch.law/academy/prior-art-search-patents) [What counts as prior art under the European Patent Convention, what a patentability search covers, how it is done and what it cannot tell you.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/prior-art-search-patents) * [Guide · Commercial](https://www.pitch.law/academy/rfi-rfp-procurement) ### [Running a Request for Information or Proposal](https://www.pitch.law/academy/rfi-rfp-procurement) [How to run a request for information or proposal so that confidentiality, IP and your contract terms are protected before you choose a vendor.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/rfi-rfp-procurement) * [Guide · Commercial](https://www.pitch.law/academy/saas-agreements) ### [SaaS Agreements](https://www.pitch.law/academy/saas-agreements) [Subscriptions, service levels, data ownership, liability and exit in SaaS contracts, with the GDPR, the Data Act and national contract rules.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/saas-agreements) * [Guide · Information Technology](https://www.pitch.law/academy/eu-data-act) ### [The EU Data Act](https://www.pitch.law/academy/eu-data-act) [What Regulation (EU) 2023/2854 requires of makers and users of connected products, data holders, cloud providers and anyone who contracts about data, and when each part applies.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/eu-data-act) * [Guide · Intellectual property](https://www.pitch.law/academy/trademark-transfer-licensing-recordals) ### [Transferring and Licensing a Trademark](https://www.pitch.law/academy/trademark-transfer-licensing-recordals) [How assignments and licences of EU and Benelux trademarks work, why they should be recorded, and how customs recordals fit in.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/trademark-transfer-licensing-recordals) * [Guide · Intellectual property](https://www.pitch.law/academy/trademark-clearance-search-explained) ### [What Is a Trademark Clearance Search?](https://www.pitch.law/academy/trademark-clearance-search-explained) [A clearance search checks, before you file or launch, whether earlier rights stand in the way of a new mark. This article explains what it covers, what it cannot do and how to read the result.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/trademark-clearance-search-explained) * [Guide · Intellectual property](https://www.pitch.law/academy/trademark-watch-service-explained) ### [What Is a Trademark Watch?](https://www.pitch.law/academy/trademark-watch-service-explained) [A trademark watch tells you when someone files a mark that resembles yours, while opposition is still possible. This article explains why it matters, how it works and what it cannot do.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/trademark-watch-service-explained) * [Guide · Legal Aspects of Artificial Intelligence](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-in-hr-and-recruitment-under-the-ai-act) ### [AI Act in HR and Recruitment: the High-Risk Rules](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-in-hr-and-recruitment-under-the-ai-act) [Recruitment and HR AI is usually high-risk under the AI Act (from 2 December 2027), and emotion recognition at work is banned. What employers must do.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-in-hr-and-recruitment-under-the-ai-act) * [Guide · Legal Aspects of Artificial Intelligence](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-act-meets-gdpr-where-frameworks-overlap) ### [AI Act Meets GDPR: Where the Two Frameworks Overlap](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-act-meets-gdpr-where-frameworks-overlap) [How the AI Act and the GDPR apply side by side to the same AI system: roles, impact assessments, automated decisions, transparency, data quality and special categories.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-act-meets-gdpr-where-frameworks-overlap) * [Guide · Legal Aspects of Artificial Intelligence](https://www.pitch.law/academy/provider-vs-deployer-ai-act) ### [AI Act Provider vs Deployer: Duties and Article 25](https://www.pitch.law/academy/provider-vs-deployer-ai-act) [Under the AI Act, the provider builds or brands an AI system and the deployer uses it. Each role's duties, and when Article 25 makes a deployer a provider.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/provider-vs-deployer-ai-act) * [Guide · Legal Aspects of Artificial Intelligence](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-act-risk-classification-explained) ### [AI Act Risk Classification: the Four Risk Levels](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-act-risk-classification-explained) [The AI Act sorts AI into unacceptable (prohibited), high, limited (transparency) and minimal risk. How to tell which level your AI system falls in.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-act-risk-classification-explained) * [Guide · Legal Aspects of Artificial Intelligence](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-intellectual-property-training-data-copyright-disclosure) ### [AI and Intellectual Property: Training Data and Copyright](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-intellectual-property-training-data-copyright-disclosure) [How EU copyright law and the AI Act treat training data, rights holders' opt-outs, training summaries, and the protection of AI-generated output and inventions.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-intellectual-property-training-data-copyright-disclosure) * [Guide · Legal Aspects of Artificial Intelligence](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-clauses-in-vendor-contracts) ### [AI Clauses in Vendor Contracts: 9 Terms to Negotiate](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-clauses-in-vendor-contracts) [The AI clauses to negotiate when you buy or supply AI: AI Act roles, training on your data, output ownership, IP indemnity, audit and logs, liability.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-clauses-in-vendor-contracts) * [Guide · Legal Aspects of Artificial Intelligence](https://www.pitch.law/academy/building-an-ai-governance-framework) ### [Building an AI Governance Framework](https://www.pitch.law/academy/building-an-ai-governance-framework) [What an internal AI governance framework consists of, which legal duties it must carry, and how a mid-sized organisation can build one in proportion to its use of AI.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/building-an-ai-governance-framework) * [Guide · Legal Aspects of Artificial Intelligence](https://www.pitch.law/academy/conformity-assessments-high-risk-ai-systems) ### [Conformity Assessments for High-Risk AI](https://www.pitch.law/academy/conformity-assessments-high-risk-ai-systems) [What a provider of a high-risk AI system must demonstrate before market entry under the AI Act, which assessment route applies and what follows afterwards.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/conformity-assessments-high-risk-ai-systems) * [Guide · Privacy & Data Protection](https://www.pitch.law/academy/cookie-compliance-and-consent-management) ### [Cookies and Consent](https://www.pitch.law/academy/cookie-compliance-and-consent-management) [When a cookie banner is required, what valid consent looks like and how the ePrivacy rules and the GDPR work together.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/cookie-compliance-and-consent-management) * [Guide · Legal Aspects of Artificial Intelligence](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-act-compliance-timeline) ### [EU AI Act Timeline: Every Date from 2024 to 2030](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-act-compliance-timeline) [The AI Act applies in stages from 2 February 2025 to 31 December 2030. Every date, what applies and who it affects, with the 2026 high-risk postponement.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-act-compliance-timeline) * [Guide · Intellectual property](https://www.pitch.law/academy/euipo-fast-track-filing) ### [EUIPO Fast Track](https://www.pitch.law/academy/euipo-fast-track-filing) [Fast Track speeds up examination of EU trade mark applications that use pre-approved wording. This article explains what it is, what it does not change and when it makes sense.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/euipo-fast-track-filing) * [Guide · Privacy & Data Protection](https://www.pitch.law/academy/data-breach-response-the-72-hour-countdown) ### [GDPR Breach Notification: the 72-Hour Rule](https://www.pitch.law/academy/data-breach-response-the-72-hour-countdown) [Article 33 GDPR: notify the authority within 72 hours of becoming aware of a personal data breach. When to notify, how hours count, when to tell people.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/data-breach-response-the-72-hour-countdown) * [Guide · Privacy & Data Protection](https://www.pitch.law/academy/data-retention-policies-how-long-should-you-keep-personal-data) ### [GDPR Data Retention: How Long to Keep Personal Data](https://www.pitch.law/academy/data-retention-policies-how-long-should-you-keep-personal-data) [The GDPR sets no fixed retention period: Article 5(1)(e) allows no longer than necessary. How to set retention periods, handle backups and delete data.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/data-retention-policies-how-long-should-you-keep-personal-data) * [Guide · Privacy & Data Protection](https://www.pitch.law/academy/data-subject-access-requests-dsars-practical-guide) ### [How to Answer a DSAR Within the GDPR Deadline](https://www.pitch.law/academy/data-subject-access-requests-dsars-practical-guide) [Answer a data subject access request within one month, extendable by two (Articles 12 and 15 GDPR): what to send, what you may refuse, how to keep time.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/data-subject-access-requests-dsars-practical-guide) * [Guide · Privacy & Data Protection](https://www.pitch.law/academy/international-data-transfers-post-schrems-ii) ### [International Data Transfers](https://www.pitch.law/academy/international-data-transfers-post-schrems-ii) [How Chapter V GDPR works after Schrems II: adequacy decisions, the EU-US Data Privacy Framework, standard contractual clauses and the assessment that goes with them.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/international-data-transfers-post-schrems-ii) * [Guide · Intellectual property](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ip-cost-planning-budgeting-for-multi-jurisdiction-filings) ### [IP Cost Planning for Multi-Jurisdiction Filings](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ip-cost-planning-budgeting-for-multi-jurisdiction-filings) [What a trademark portfolio costs depends on routes, classes and countries as much as on the number of marks. This article sets out the cost elements and how to plan them over the life of a mark.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ip-cost-planning-budgeting-for-multi-jurisdiction-filings) * [Guide · Corporate and M\&A](https://www.pitch.law/academy/m-and-a-due-diligence-what-to-expect) ### [M\&A Due Diligence: What to Expect](https://www.pitch.law/academy/m-and-a-due-diligence-what-to-expect) [What a due diligence review covers in a share or asset deal in the EU, how the process runs, and how the findings turn into price, warranties and conditions.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/m-and-a-due-diligence-what-to-expect) * [Guide · Intellectual property](https://www.pitch.law/academy/managing-your-ip-deadlines) ### [Managing Your IP Deadlines](https://www.pitch.law/academy/managing-your-ip-deadlines) [Which time limits matter in trademark, design and patent matters, which of them can be extended, what happens when one is missed, and how a reliable deadline process is built.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/managing-your-ip-deadlines) * [Guide · Intellectual property](https://www.pitch.law/academy/the-nice-classification-explained) ### [Nice Classification: How the 45 Classes Work](https://www.pitch.law/academy/the-nice-classification-explained) [The Nice Classification sorts goods and services into 45 trademark classes (software, for example, is in class 9). How to choose classes and word them.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/the-nice-classification-explained) * [Guide · Intellectual property](https://www.pitch.law/academy/online-brand-protection-how-brand-monitoring-works) ### [Online Brand Protection: How Brand Monitoring Works](https://www.pitch.law/academy/online-brand-protection-how-brand-monitoring-works) [How infringements of a trademark are found online, which rules decide whether they are unlawful, and which routes exist to stop them.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/online-brand-protection-how-brand-monitoring-works) * [Guide · Privacy & Data Protection](https://www.pitch.law/academy/gdpr-records-of-processing-activities-ropa-what-you-need-to-know) ### [Records of Processing Activities (RoPA)](https://www.pitch.law/academy/gdpr-records-of-processing-activities-ropa-what-you-need-to-know) [What Article 30 GDPR requires you to record, who must keep a register, and how to keep it useful.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/gdpr-records-of-processing-activities-ropa-what-you-need-to-know) * [Guide · Intellectual property](https://www.pitch.law/academy/renewal-management-for-ip-portfolios) ### [Renewal Management for IP Portfolios](https://www.pitch.law/academy/renewal-management-for-ip-portfolios) [How renewals of trademarks, designs and patents work, what the grace periods are, how to decide which rights to keep, and the invoice scams to avoid.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/renewal-management-for-ip-portfolios) * [Guide · Corporate and M\&A](https://www.pitch.law/academy/sanctions-screening-and-anti-money-laundering-what-every-business-needs-to-know) ### [Sanctions Screening and Anti-Money Laundering](https://www.pitch.law/academy/sanctions-screening-and-anti-money-laundering-what-every-business-needs-to-know) [What EU sanctions and anti-money-laundering rules require from businesses, who must identify beneficial owners, and how screening works in practice.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/sanctions-screening-and-anti-money-laundering-what-every-business-needs-to-know) * [Guide · Legal Aspects of Artificial Intelligence](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-literacy-obligation-businesses-overlooking) ### [The AI Literacy Obligation](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-literacy-obligation-businesses-overlooking) [Article 4 of the AI Act has applied since February 2025 to every company using AI. What it requires, how the 2026 amendment changed it and what to document.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/ai-literacy-obligation-businesses-overlooking) * [Guide · Legal Aspects of Artificial Intelligence](https://www.pitch.law/academy/eu-ai-act-practical-overview-for-businesses) ### [The EU AI Act: a Practical Overview](https://www.pitch.law/academy/eu-ai-act-practical-overview-for-businesses) [What the AI Act regulates, who it applies to, how the risk-based approach works and what the penalties are, as of October 2026.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/eu-ai-act-practical-overview-for-businesses) * [Guide · Intellectual property](https://www.pitch.law/academy/trademark-registration-from-application-to-registration) ### [Trademark Registration: From Application to Registration](https://www.pitch.law/academy/trademark-registration-from-application-to-registration) [How a trademark application moves through the EUIPO, the Benelux office (BOIP) and the Madrid System, what happens after registration, and what keeps a registered mark in force.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/trademark-registration-from-application-to-registration) * [Guide · Intellectual property](https://www.pitch.law/academy/understanding-trademark-similarity) ### [Understanding Trademark Similarity](https://www.pitch.law/academy/understanding-trademark-similarity) [Whether two marks conflict depends on how similar they are and how close the goods are. This article explains the test and how its elements are weighed.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/understanding-trademark-similarity) * [Guide · Privacy & Data Protection](https://www.pitch.law/academy/website-technology-audits-and-gdpr) ### [Website Technology Audits and the GDPR](https://www.pitch.law/academy/website-technology-audits-and-gdpr) [What a website technology audit examines, why privacy notices and actual data flows drift apart, and which legal duties it checks.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/website-technology-audits-and-gdpr) * [Guide · Intellectual property](https://www.pitch.law/academy/when-to-oppose-a-trademark) ### [When to Oppose a Trademark](https://www.pitch.law/academy/when-to-oppose-a-trademark) [Opposition lets the owner of an earlier right challenge a new trademark application before it is registered. This article explains the conditions, the deadlines and the factors that decide whether to proceed.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/when-to-oppose-a-trademark) * [Guide · New gTLDs](https://www.pitch.law/academy/dotbrand-domains-in-financial-services-what-a-decade-of-data-reveals-about-trust-security-and-the-road-to-2026) ### [Brand TLDs in Financial Services](https://www.pitch.law/academy/dotbrand-domains-in-financial-services-what-a-decade-of-data-reveals-about-trust-security-and-the-road-to-2026) [Why banks and insurers look at brand TLDs, what a brand TLD can and cannot do against phishing, and which EU rules shape the decision.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/dotbrand-domains-in-financial-services-what-a-decade-of-data-reveals-about-trust-security-and-the-road-to-2026) * [Guide · New gTLDs](https://www.pitch.law/academy/brand-tlds-in-the-2026-round-of-new-gtlds-key-takeaways-from-the-draft-applicant-guidebook) ### [Brand TLDs in the 2026 Round: the Applicant Guidebook](https://www.pitch.law/academy/brand-tlds-in-the-2026-round-of-new-gtlds-key-takeaways-from-the-draft-applicant-guidebook) [What a brand TLD is, how the Applicant Guidebook treats it, and the contract obligations that come with running one.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/brand-tlds-in-the-2026-round-of-new-gtlds-key-takeaways-from-the-draft-applicant-guidebook) * [Guide · New gTLDs](https://www.pitch.law/academy/icanns-next-round-of-new-generic-top-level-domains-in-2026) ### [ICANN's Next Round of New gTLDs (2026)](https://www.pitch.law/academy/icanns-next-round-of-new-generic-top-level-domains-in-2026) [Where ICANN's 2026 round of new generic top-level domains stands in October 2026, how the process continues after the application window, and what it means for brand owners.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/icanns-next-round-of-new-generic-top-level-domains-in-2026) * [Guide · New gTLDs](https://www.pitch.law/academy/strategic-use-cases-for-brand-tlds-from-experiment-to-a-cornerstone-in-digital-strategy) ### [Strategic Use Cases for Brand TLDs](https://www.pitch.law/academy/strategic-use-cases-for-brand-tlds-from-experiment-to-a-cornerstone-in-digital-strategy) [How companies use a brand TLD in practice, from authentication and anti-phishing to internal systems and partner networks, and the legal points that go with each use.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/strategic-use-cases-for-brand-tlds-from-experiment-to-a-cornerstone-in-digital-strategy) * [Guide · Corporate and M\&A](https://www.pitch.law/academy/transitional-services-agreement-after-an-m-a-deal) ### [Transitional Services Agreements](https://www.pitch.law/academy/transitional-services-agreement-after-an-m-a-deal) [What a transitional services agreement covers, the terms that decide whether the handover runs smoothly, and how to plan the exit from the start.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/transitional-services-agreement-after-an-m-a-deal) * [Guide · New gTLDs](https://www.pitch.law/academy/history-and-background) ### [History of ICANN's New gTLD Program](https://www.pitch.law/academy/history-and-background) [How the top-level domain space grew from a handful of extensions to more than a thousand, and what the earlier rounds teach applicants and brand owners today.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/history-and-background) * [Guide · Tax](https://www.pitch.law/academy/auteursrechten-en-advocaten-het-hof-van-cassatie-zet-de-puntjes-op-de-i) ### [Copyright and Lawyers: Belgium's Court of Cassation](https://www.pitch.law/academy/auteursrechten-en-advocaten-het-hof-van-cassatie-zet-de-puntjes-op-de-i) [Belgium's Court of Cassation held that the rules of the legal profession do not rule out copyright in a lawyer's writing, and what this means for ownership, engagement letters and tax.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/auteursrechten-en-advocaten-het-hof-van-cassatie-zet-de-puntjes-op-de-i) * [Guide · Information Technology](https://www.pitch.law/academy/the-nis2-directive-towards-a-firmer-eu-wide-cybersecurity-framework) ### [The NIS2 Directive](https://www.pitch.law/academy/the-nis2-directive-towards-a-firmer-eu-wide-cybersecurity-framework) [Who falls under NIS2, what the directive requires, how the 24-hour, 72-hour and one-month incident reports work and how they relate to GDPR breach notification.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/the-nis2-directive-towards-a-firmer-eu-wide-cybersecurity-framework) * [Guide · Tax](https://www.pitch.law/academy/the-new-belgian-tax-regime-for-copyrights) ### [Belgian Copyright Tax Regime After the 2023 Reform](https://www.pitch.law/academy/the-new-belgian-tax-regime-for-copyrights) [In Belgium, copyright fees are taxed at 15% as movable income. What the 2023 reform changed and what to document so that the arrangement stands up.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/the-new-belgian-tax-regime-for-copyrights) * [Guide · Patents](https://www.pitch.law/academy/unified-patent-court) ### [The Unified Patent Court](https://www.pitch.law/academy/unified-patent-court) [How the Unified Patent Court is organised, what it decides, how its proceedings differ from national courts, and what the opt-out means for your European patents.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/unified-patent-court) * [Guide · Patents](https://www.pitch.law/academy/unitary-patent) ### [The Unitary Patent](https://www.pitch.law/academy/unitary-patent) [What unitary effect is, which states it covers in October 2026, how it differs from validating a European patent country by country, and when each route makes sense.](https://www.pitch.law/academy/unitary-patent) ## Let’s talk Tell us what you’re working on. We’ll get the right person on it and reply within one business day. 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