These General Terms and Conditions apply to all services provided by Pateneers to its clients (hereinafter "Client"). Deviating conditions of the Client shall only apply if Pateneers expressly agrees to them in writing.
§ 1 Scope & Formation of Contract
These GTC apply to all contracts concluded between Pateneers and the Client concerning consulting services, software development, portal access and other services in the field of IP management.
A contract is formed upon written order confirmation by Pateneers or upon commencement of performance. Offers by Pateneers are non-binding and without obligation unless a binding period is expressly stated.
§ 2 Scope of Services
The scope of services to be provided is determined by the respective offer or service description. Pateneers provides services in accordance with the state of the art and with the diligence of a prudent businessman.
Pateneers is entitled to engage qualified third parties (subcontractors) to perform the services. Responsibility towards the Client remains with Pateneers.
Changes to the scope of services require written agreement. Additional costs arising from subsequent change requests by the Client will be invoiced separately.
§ 3 Client's Obligations to Cooperate
The Client shall provide Pateneers with all information, documents and access necessary for the provision of services in a timely and complete manner. The Client shall appoint a contact person with sufficient decision-making authority.
Delays in service provision caused by insufficient cooperation on the part of the Client shall not be attributable to Pateneers. Additional costs arising from such delays may be invoiced to the Client.
§ 4 Remuneration & Payment Terms
Remuneration is based on the agreed offer. Unless otherwise agreed, Pateneers' hourly rate valid at the time the order is placed shall apply.
- Invoices are payable within 14 days of the invoice date without deduction.
- For projects with a duration of more than 4 weeks, Pateneers is entitled to issue interim invoices.
- In the event of default, default interest pursuant to § 288 BGB (German Civil Code) shall be charged.
- All prices are exclusive of statutory value added tax.
§ 5 Confidentiality
Pateneers undertakes to treat all confidential information of the Client made available to it in the course of the mandate with strict confidentiality and not to disclose it to third parties. This obligation shall also apply after termination of the contractual relationship for a period of 5 years.
Confidential information means all information that is marked as such or whose confidentiality is evident from the circumstances, in particular trade and business secrets, patent strategies and IP portfolios.
§ 6 Intellectual Property & Rights of Use
All work results created within the scope of a mandate (concepts, documentation, software tools, etc.) shall be made available to the Client for use upon full payment of the fee. Copyright remains with Pateneers.
Pateneers retains the right to use general methods, know-how and non-client-specific tools developed in the course of a mandate for other mandates.
§ 7 Liability
Pateneers shall be liable without limitation for damages caused by gross negligence or wilful misconduct. In the case of slight negligence, Pateneers shall only be liable in the event of a breach of a material contractual obligation and only up to the amount of foreseeable, typical damage.
Liability for indirect damages, loss of profit and consequential damages is excluded to the extent permitted by law. The limitations of liability do not apply to damages arising from injury to life, limb or health.
§ 8 Term & Termination
Project relationships end upon contractual performance. Ongoing obligations (e.g. portal access) may be terminated by either party with 4 weeks' notice to the end of the month.
The right to extraordinary termination for good cause remains unaffected. Good cause exists in particular if the Client defaults on payment despite a reminder or breaches material contractual obligations.
§ 9 Final Provisions & Jurisdiction
The law of the Federal Republic of Germany shall apply, excluding the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG). The place of jurisdiction for all disputes arising from this contract is Munich, provided that the Client is a merchant, a legal entity under public law or a special fund under public law.
Should individual provisions of these GTC be or become invalid, the validity of the remaining provisions shall not be affected. The invalid provision shall be replaced by a valid provision that comes closest to the economic purpose of the invalid provision.
As of: January 2025