Everyone needs a lawyer at some time in their lives, whether it’s for personal or business reasons. This became true for former para-swimmer and MBE Giles Long when he needed our support in protecting the intellectual property of his invention LEXI.
We spoke to Georgie to find out more about Giles, the work she does to support him and his business, and the obstacles they’ve had to navigate to get to where they are today.
A virtual chat with Georgie
Georgie qualified as a solicitor in 1998, and has been recognised for many years as a ‘leading individual’ by independent guides. She specialises in helping clients protect their intellectual property rights, focusing on risk and reputation management.
In 2018, Georgie was appointed as the lead for business services for our London office.
Can you start by telling us a little bit about Giles and his background?
Giles Long is a retired Paralympian swimmer having competed at three Paralympic Games – Atlanta 1996, Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004. His illustrious career was glittered with medals and podium finishes, even taking home the gold medal in the S8 100 Butterfly, where he also set a world-record time. He says “it was the highlight of a sporting career” in which he won seven medals.
In the years after he was recognised with an MBE, retired from sport and began changing people’s perceptions of para sports through his creation, LEXI. Today he’s an aspiring businessman and entrepreneur.
As a person, George is wonderful, kind and considerate, and it’s been a pleasure working with him over the last couple of years.
Why did Giles first get in touch with you?
I first received Giles’ case some years ago. His invention was in the early stages and was a concept that had potential for growth.
At this stage in the product lifecycle, it’s very easy for competitors to copy ideas and produce them themselves, especially when they have a foundation to act on ideas quickly.
That’s why it’s important to get the right protection in place to avoid any exploitation.
Giles’ invention LEXI is designed to explain the classification system to TV audiences. In the past people would watch events at home without knowing why someone with one arm was racing against someone with one leg for example. Giles felt this had to change if para sports were going to grow amongst the general public.
LEXI uses a human stick-man shape and an intuitive traffic-light colour scheme to illustrate the location of different impairments and whether they affect movement, coordination, vision and comprehension. This makes it easier for viewers to understand – at a glance – why competitors are grouped together.
The system had its major breakthrough at the London 2012 games when it was used by Channel 4 and Australia’s ABC.
What initial support did you offer Giles with this?
The team and I helped Giles with a number of matters from the offset.
We first supported him with ring fencing LEXI as a brand and exploring the whole spectrum of IP rights that would effectively protect his idea from potential competitors.
Giles and I also worked together on selecting the right partners to work with. Some businesses and organisations will say they’re diverse and that they promote opportunities for all without really having disabled people’s best interests at heart. That’s why we worked with a select few partners to take LEXI from conception through to execution.
As the brand grew, more international broadcasters became interested in LEXI. From the early discussions with Giles we knew this idea had potential to go worldwide, so as part of our strategy we incorporated cross-border protection. We were able to welcome these opportunities knowing we’d laid the foundations to protect what matters most.
What difficulties did you have to help Giles overcome, and how did you cope with that pressure?
One of the challenges we faced was securing IP protection for LEXI on a global scale, at a reasonable cost for Giles and navigating the varying IP rights that could protect LEXI on a country by country basis. With various jurisdictions, they present different laws and there’s no one size fits all solution. At times we’ve worked with our international partners to navigate the different requirements.
Through hard work and working with our established overseas connections, we’ve been able to establish LEXI with broadcasters in 140 countries worldwide. This has allowed Giles to diversify the brand to offer three distinct products, all of which are fully protected and he has full ownership of content featuring LEXI – unless it has a foreign voice or is overlaid over actual footage.
I often have mixed emotions when it comes to pressure. On one hand you feel a great responsibility to your client and that can add to the pressure you feel. However it’s at times like this when you can depend on your team and your experience to help you through. On the other hand you’re aware that your client is also feeling the pressure because this is their creation and they’ve invested a lot. They look to you for support, advice and reassurance so it’s important to remain professional in these moments. I’m also very protective by nature and use this to channel any pressure I’m feeling into drive and motivation to protect my client.
You’ve built a strong and lasting professional relationship with Giles. Tell us how you’ve worked together and what that means to you.
Giles and I have worked together for several years now, achieving a lot and overcoming many obstacles. We’ve built a great working relationship and wonderful friendship. I’ve seen Giles grow from a person with an idea to someone living a dream.
We’ve spent hours on the phone, and met in person on several occasions to discuss ideas, strategy, and to pre-empt any issues that might arise. There have been late nights and early starts, but throughout our determination to reach our collective goals hasn’t wavered.
When working with clients on things that are personal to them you get a sense of their passion. I’m grateful for the opportunity to help Giles to turn his dream into reality.
How does it feel to have played such a crucial part in Giles’s story?
It means a lot to me have helped Giles on his journey. It has even more meaning supporting Giles with his product because through helping him, together we are helping people to better understand para sports. This in turn will help grow the sport for athletes and raise awareness of disabilities and equal opportunities for all.
I whole-heartedly believe this will be a success. Giles has the hunger and drive to support fellow para-athletes through LEXI and I’m delighted that we can stand beside him every step of the way, ensuring we protect what matters most to him.
Intellectual property support for you and your business
Brand, reputation and intellectual property (IP) affect every business venture. Our national team can help you manage the risks involved to make sure you get the most out of your IP.
Intellectual property issues can take up a lot of costly and time-consuming. Our IP lawyers will manage those issues for you, so you can focus on what’s important to you.
To find out more about the services we offer, visit our intellectual property page.
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