About Us

The IP Innovation Clinic is a needs-based innovation-to-society intellectual property (IP) legal clinic based at Osgoode Hall Law School at York University. The Clinic is staffed by student volunteers (called “Clinic Fellows”) who are supervised by lawyers from Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP, Smart & Biggar LP, OWN Innovation and Oziel Law. The clinic was founded by Professor Guiseppina (Pina) D'Agostino in 2010, who also serves as the Director.

The IP Innovation Clinic operates in collaboration with the Office of the Vice-President Research & Innovation (VPRI) at York University, receives funding from Intellectual Property Ontario (IPON), an agency of the Government of Ontario, and operates in collaboration with Communitech, as part of the Government of Canada's ElevateIP program.

Under the guidance and mentorship of the supervising lawyers, Clinic Fellows provide one-to-one IP information and assistance to inventors, entrepreneurs, start-ups and small-and-medium sized enterprises to assist with their innovation and commercialization processes. Through this hands-on practical experience, Clinic Fellows learn about common early-stage IP and business issues facing actors in the innovation ecosystem.

Our Clients

The IP Innovation Clinic serves a diverse range of innovators across various industries and welcomes clients from across Canada but primarily in Southern Ontario (from within and outside the York University community).

Our clients are individuals or start-up companies who do not have the resources to hire a lawyer, patent agent, or other advisors. Obtaining just one patent in Canada can cost $20,000 or more from filing to final registration. These costs can become prohibitive for innovators, especially when you add the costs of additional patent applications, patent maintenance, incorporation, non-disclosure agreements, employment agreements, licensing agreements, and other legal structures. We assist clients with reducing some of these costs, helping them take their innovations into the marketplace.

Collaborator’s Services

York University' Office of the Vice-President Research & Innovation (VPRI)

The IP Innovation Clinic partners with York University's Office of the VPRI to provide clients affiliated with York University (i.e. faculty, students and staff) with access to the services offered by the university's technology commercialization and industry liaison unit.

The technology commercialization and industry liaison unit within the Office of the VPRI provides a full suite of industry liaison and commercialization services to York researchers and trainees seeking to find an industry partner, commercialize a technology, or create a start-up company. In addition, the unit works with companies to assist them in finding academic or industry partners, creating and facilitating innovative research collaborations.

IP Innovation Clinic clients who are affiliated with York University will also have access to the following services offered by the Office of the VPRI:

• Creation & support of partnerships between industry & academic researchers to develop innovative research projects & enable industry to access York’s research expertise.
• Access to students and postdoctoral researchers seeking internships & work experience.
• Access to facilities and sources of funding to develop proof of concepts or prototypes.
• Strategic intellectual property protection and management leveraged by strong relationships with external commercialization organizations and intellectual property firms.
• Partnership with MaRS Innovation, Toronto’s lead commercialization centre that is dedicated to creating business opportunities from the exceptional research & discovery pipeline of sixteen prominent academic institutions in Ontario.
• Partnership with ventureLab, York Region’s Regional Innovation Centre dedicated to providing business acceleration services to companies and entrepreneurs.
• Technology due diligence and market research expertise, including access to market research data from leading analyst organizations.

Bergeron Entrepreneurs in Science and Technology (BEST) Program, Lassonde School of Engineering

The BEST Program may be able to provide Clinic clients with product development and prototyping support . Clinic clients may be eligible for assistance through our collaboration with the Lassonde School of Engineering.